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Flight Muscle and Flight Activity of Melon Fly, Bactrocera Cucurbitae (diptera: Tephritidae)

Farhana Ferdousi
Department of Zoology, University of Dhaka, Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh

Shanjida Sultana
Department of Zoology, University of Dhaka, Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh

Tangin Akter
Department of Zoology, University of Dhaka, Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh

Pinakshi Roy
Department of Zoology, University of Dhaka, Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh

Shefali Begum
Department of Zoology, University of Dhaka, Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh

Abstract/ Executive Summary:

The flight activity and flight muscle of the melon fly, Bactrocera cucurbitae (Coquillett) (Diptera: Tephritidae) were observed. The Tethered technique was used to observe the flight activity in this study. The flight activity and wing and flight muscles were compared between male and female melon flies. The results indicate that the female was relatively better and strong flier than the male. The mean duration of the flight activity of the females was 13.90 min/hour and of the males was 7.12 min./hour. The mean length, width, volume of wings of the males were 6.07 mm, 2.67 mm and 10.99 mm³, respectively. On the other hand, the mean length, width, and volume of the wings of females were 7.07 mm, 2.87 mm, and 15.60 mm³, respectively. In the case of wing muscles, the mean volume of dorsal longitudinal muscle (DLM) in males and females was found 5.20 mm³ and 5.67 mm³, respectively. The mean length of flight wing muscle of males and females was 2.22 and 2.23 mm, respectively and the mean breadth of males and females was 1.65 and 1.77 mm, respectively.

Keywords: Bactrocera cucurbitae, Bitter melon, Flight muscle, Flight activity

Location: Entomology Laboratory, Department of Zoology, University of Dhaka

Start Date:

End Date:

Program Area: Pest Management

Commodity: Fly, Cucurbit

Objectives:

To understand the flight capacity of B. cucurbitae, we tested and compared the flight muscle and duration of the flight movement of both the adult male and female melon flies.

Methodology:

The research work was conducted in the Entomology Laboratory, Department of Zoology, the University of Dhaka at room temperature (30 ± 5°C) and 75% humidity. The initial culture of B. cucurbitae was collected from infested bitter melon which was bought from the Kawran Bazar, Dhaka. The infested bitter melons were kept in a large bowl on a layer of wooden crushes in the laboratory to facilitate pupation. The bowl was covered with a piece of cloth in order to give the larvae a dark and cooler environment. After 3 - 4 days, the wooden crush was sieved and newly formed pupae were collected. The pupae were kept in a 10 cm petri dish which was placed inside a rearing cage. The rearing cage had wire (synthetic) mesh on all sides except the wooden board on the bottom (45cm×45cm). There was a round opening at one side of the net that was covered by mosquito netting through which the adult flies were taken out for experimental purposes. After 7-8 days, the adult flies emerged from the pupae. The sugar solution was provided as food for the adult flies and the solution was served in a conical flask kept inside the cage. After 3-4 days of their emergence, the flies were used for experiments. Observation of flight activity: The flight activity of B. cucurbitae was observed following the Tethered Flight Technique which is a very reliable technique for observing the flight activity of flying insects(12). A table fan of about 1200 RPM (rounds per minute) and a table lamp were used as stimulators to the flies for flight. To observe the flight activity of the adult flies, 10 male and 10 female adult flies of 3 to 4 days old ages were collected. Each fly was kept at 4ºC in a refrigerator for about 3 - 4 minutes and then the thorax of each fly was glued to a long stick in order that the fly could flap its wings, but could not fly away. After that, the stick was attached to a wooden stand, which had four holes. The wooden stand was kept one meter away from a table fan and a table lamp was kept over the wooden stand. With the help of foam (filled in the holes of the wooden stand), the stick was affixed to the wooden stand when the fly became conscious (i.e., gained its sense) and tried to fly. The table fan was started with low speed and the light was switched on. The fan provided wind to the fly and the lamp provided light so that it could realize it as a flying environment. The flight movement of the flies was observed for an hour and a stopwatch was used to observe the duration of flight activity. The length and width of the wings of the flies were also noted. Then, the flies were detached from the stick and kept in 70% alcohol in a glass vial for the observation of their flight muscles. Observation of flight muscle: The flies were dissected and observed the flight muscle. The thoracic Dorsal-Longitudinal Muscle (DLM) was carefully observed under a stereomicroscope (under 10x magnification) and a picture was taken. The length and breadth of the flight muscle were measured by using ‘ImageJ’ software. Here, 1mm was set as scale and after ‘analysis’ the length and breadth were measured. The formula of volume of a cylinder was used to calculate the volume of flight muscle of the melon fly, and the formula of volume of a cone was used to calculate the volume of the wing of the melon fly.

Source of Information: Dhaka Univ. J. Biol. Sci. 30(2): 179-185, 2021 (July)

Article Link (Online Journal): DOI: https://doi.org/10.3329/dujbs.v30i2.54644

Funding Source:

Budget:

Total Budget (Tk.) :

Achievement/Findings:

In this study, it has been revealed that the females had relatively larger length, breadth and volume of wing muscle than the males. It also showed that females have higher flight capacity than males and the females were stronger flier than the males.

Knowledge Management: Journal