Effect of Low-Temperature Phosphine Fumigation on the Survival of Bactrocera correcta (Diptera: Tephritidae).

This laboratory-based study examined the effects of low-temperature phosphine fumigation on the survival of the eggs and larvae of the guava fruit fly, Bactrocera correcta (Bezzi). Individual flies at different developmental stages, from 6-h-old eggs to third instars, were exposed to 0.92 mg/liter phosphine for 1-7 d at 5°C. We found that 12-h-old eggs and third instars were the most tolerant to phosphine. Increasing phosphine concentrations from 0.46 to 4.56 mg/liter increased mortality in these two stages. However, increased exposure times were required to achieve equal mortality rates in 12-h-old eggs and third instars when phosphine concentrations were ≥4.56 and ≥3.65 mg/liter, respectively. C(n)t = k expression was obtained at 50, 90, and 99% mortality levels, and the toxicity index (n) ranged from 0.43 to 0.77 for the two stages. The synergistic effects of a controlled atmosphere (CA) with elevated CO(2) levels were also investigated, and we found that a CO(2) concentration between 10% and 15% under CA conditions was optimal for low-temperature phosphine fumigation.