The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA), the USDA and the San Mateo County Agricultural Commissioner’s office have eradicated a Mediterranean fruit fly (Medfly) infestation centred in and around the City of Half Moon Bay. This ends a 56-square-mile quarantine that began November 24, 2017.
The CDFA used the release of sterile male Medflies at a minimum rate of 500,000 flies per square mile per week as the mainstay of its eradication measures for this pest. Additionally, properties within 200 meters of the detection sites were treated with an organic formula.
"This program demonstrates the value of biological approaches to invasive species," said CDFA Secretary Karen Ross. "In the 20-plus years we have released sterile Medflies in Southern California we have seen a dramatic reduction in infestations and quarantines and, of course, have shifted the focus of this long-term effort from pesticides to a more environmentally sound system.”
The eradication effort was a response to the detection of two wild Medflies. The sterile fly release program has a proven track record of eradication in California. The sterile male Medflies are brought to California by the joint CDFA/USDA sterile insect rearing facility in Los Alamitos, California, which prepares sterile flies for release everyday over California.
Source: http://www.pressreleasepoint.com/mediterranean-fruit-fly-eradicated-san-mateo-county-release-18-063-print-release
