Implementation of the Starter Diet Technique for Medfly Mass-Rearing at Metapa, Chiapas, Mexico

Abstract

One of the main requirements to successfully apply the Sterile Insect Technique (SIT), is to have efficient and economic rearing methods available. Larval diets that produce large numbers of relatively good quality flies have been developed to produce the Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata (Wied.) (Schwarz et al. 1985). However, larval diet costs still represent one of the major rearing costs (>50%), and therefore, a limiting factor to mass produce this species and for the application of the SIT.