| Abstract | A study was carried out on the impact of several olive Olea europaea L. (Lamiales: Oleaceae) varieties (Amfissis, Arbequina, Branquita de Elvas, Carolea, Kalamon, Koroneiki, Leccino, Manzanilla, Mastoidis, Moroccan Picholine, Picholine and Sourani) on the performance of the olive fruit fly Bactrocera oleae (Gmelin) (Diptera: Tephritidae). Measurements were made over a period of three successive years monitoring the biological parameters of B. oleae (weight of pupa, percentage of emergence, sex ratio, adult size and ovarian maturity) on the varieties of olive tree noted above. These measurements were taken as indices of developmental performance for B. oleae on the olive varieties. The results showed that B. oleae exhibited the highest performance when it was nurtured on the varieties Manzanilla, Moroccan Picholine, Leccino and Picholine rather than Koroneiki. Specifically, the mean weight of the pupae as well as the length of the developed adults was significantly higher than in those individuals that developed in smaller fruits such as Koroneiki. There were significantly higher recorded percentages of emerged adults (up to 80%), with a tendency to produce more female than male adults, while the developed females produced a significantly higher number of eggs. The highest olive fly performance was shown by individuals developing in Leccino and Carolea, with the females developing in Carolea showing the best reproductive performance compared with all the other varieties. These findings may be of ecological significance, and explain to some extent the observed variability in fruit infestation among olive varieties in the field. |
