5 More Medflies, 1 Larva Discovered in Westminster : Infestation: State officials, heartened by the close grouping of all the recent finds, call for another round of malathion spraying and plan to release sterile flies.

Five more Mediterranean fruit flies and one larva turned up in a residential neighborhood Thursday, prompting state officials to call for another round of pesticide spraying next week.

State workers went yard to yard in a 200-meter radius surrounding the 8500 block of Lido Avenue on Thursday, spraying the pesticide malathion on bushes and trees that are attractive to the pest.

A total of 23 Medflies and six larvae have been found in the area around Newland Street and McFadden Avenue since last week, but the close grouping of the finds has state officials confident that they have found the center of the infestation.

“It’s not spread out like we’ve had in the past,” said Carl DeWing, a spokesman for the state Department of Food and Agriculture. “That’s good.”

The Medflies identified Thursday were found in the 8600 block of Bishop Avenue, and the larva was found in a nectarine tree in a back yard in the neighborhood.

Officials said they will do ground spraying Monday in a 200-meter radius around the area. Quarantine boundaries will probably be set up sometime early next week. In the meantime, area residents are being asked to keep any fresh, home-grown fruits and vegetables on their property.

In a further attempt to halt the spread of the infestation, state officials said, they will probably release 30 million to 40 million sterile Medflies a week in the area beginning next week, possibly as soon as Wednesday.