Influence of Prior Egg-laying Experience on Choice of Host Fruits for Oviposition by the Mediterranean Fruit Fly, Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann)

Abstract

Laboratory populations of Ceratitis capitata were preexposed to either mock orange or sweet orange for oviposition. Compared with an unexposed population, both these populations showed a preference for their preexposure type host when offered a choice for 24 hours. By 48 hours all three populations oviposited exclusively on the sweet oranges. Subsequent removal of the preferred hosts resulted in the use of the alternative underexploited hosts.