Irradiation to ensure quarantine security for Cryptophlebia spp. (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) in sapindaceous fruits from Hawaii.

Studies were undertaken to determine whether irradiation treatment at 250 Gy, an accepted treatment for disinfestation of fruit flies in spindaceous fruits from Hawaii, would also disinfest fruit of two species of Cryptophlebia. Cryptophlebia illepida (Butler) was determined to be more tolerant of irradiation than Cryptophlebia ombrodelta (Lower); therefore, C. illepida was the focus for detailed tests. Using the criterion of success in developing to the adult stage, the pattern of tolerance to irradiation in C. illepida was generally eggs < early instars < late instars < pupae. The most tolerant stage potentially occurring in harvested fruits was late (fourth and fifth) instars. Development to adult was reduced slightly in late instars receiving an irradiation dose of 62.5 Gy, whereas development to adult was dramatically reduced in late instars receiving irradiation doses > or = 125 Gy. No C. illepida larvae receiving an irradiation dose > or = 125 Gy emerged as adults and produced viable eggs, indicating sterility can be achieved at doses well below 250 Gy. In large scale tests, when 11,256 late instars were irradiated with a target dose of 250 Gy, 951 pupated (8.4%) and none eclosed as adults. Within the pupal stage, tolerance increased with age; 7- to 8-d-old pupae (the oldest pupae tested) treated with an irradiation dose of 125 Gy produced viable offspring, whereas those treated with a dose of 250 Gy produced no viable offspring. Irradiation of adults with a target dose of 250 Gy before pairing and mating resulted in no viable eggs. Irradiation of actively ovipositing adult females resulted in no subsequent viable eggs. Therefore, the irradiation quarantine treatment of a minimum absorbed dose of 250 Gy approved for Hawaii's fruits will effectively disinfest fruits of any Cryptophlebia in addition to fruit flies.