Irradiation of Queensland Fruit Fly Pupae to Meet Quarantine Requirements12

In Dacus tryoni (Froggatt) no significant differences in radiation sensitivity were observed in 7 strains originating from Queensland and New South Wales. The most radiation-resistant physiological age of pupae extended over the last 3/10 of their development. A dose of 5 krad nearly sterilized both sexes within this period; doubling this dose prevented egg laying by treated females and permitted only 6 eggs per million to hatch and none to survive when irradiated males were mated with normal females. A dose of 10 krad given to fruit as a commodity treatment would provide adequate safeguards against the spread of this pest species.