WALNUT PARK : Oriental Fruit Flies Found; Bait to Be Put Out Today
Four Oriental fruit flies were found near Walnut Park in Los Angeles County late last week and over the weekend, and an eradication effort over 12 square miles is scheduled to begin today.
The male insects were trapped in guava and orange trees, near the intersection of Firestone Boulevard and Wilmington Avenue, said spokeswoman Carla Agar of the California Department of Food and Agriculture.
The department, working with Los Angeles County Agricultural Commissioner Leon Spaugy, will begin eradication treatments in the area Tuesday, using a technique known as male annihilation.
About 600 bait stations per square mile, containing a methyl eugenol-Naled mixture, will be applied to utility poles, street trees and other unpainted surfaces, such as fences, using pressurized tree-marking guns.
Methyl eugenol attracts the male fruit fly and Naled is an insecticide that kills the fly when it lands on the bait station. The boundary is 12 square miles around the areas of the find. State officials said they will repeat the treatment every two weeks, for a minimum of four applications.
The Oriental fruit fly, established in Southeast Asia and most of the Pacific Islands, is similar to the Mediterranean fruit fly and can cause extensive damage to fruits, vegetables and ornamental plants, Agar said.
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