Field dispersal and survival of sterile medfly males aromatically treated with ginger root oil.

We studied the dispersal behavior and survival of sterile medfly males either treated or not with ginger root oil (GRO), in field conditions, in Petrolina-PE, northeast Brazil, from May 2006 to December 2007 in a sterile insect technique (SIT) program. The tsl strain Vienna 8 from the Ceratitis capitata Wied. (Diptera: Tephritidae), medfly, mass-rearing facility located in Juazeiro-BA, Brazil, was used. The results showed that sterile males either exposed or not to GRO exhibit similar dispersal behavior and postrelease survival. More than 60% of the sterile males, either treated or not treated with GRO, were recovered at a 25-m distance from the releasing point, approximately 20% at 50 m, and 5% in traps situated 100 m from the releasing point. Around 90% of the sterile males, exposed or not to GRO, were recovered 5 d after release of the sterile male individuals, whereas <1% were recovered after 11 d. Our results imply that ginger root oil can be used to treat sterile medfly males without interfering with their dispersal or survival in the field.