Delayed allatectomy and feeding in Phormia regina (Meig): effects on follicular development.

A delay in feeding a protein meal to the female blow-fly following allatectomy results in inhibition of follicular development in the previtellogenic stage. On the other hand, a protein meal given immediately after the operation permits 55% of the flies that do not deposit yolk in their oocytes fail to do so because of the absence of a corpus allatum hormone necessary for the synthesis of vitellogenin.