Rhagoletis indifferens

Rhagoletis indifferens
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	Diptera
Family:	Tephritidae
Genus:	Rhagoletis
Species:	R. indifferens
Binomial name
	Rhagoletis indifferens; Curran, 1932
Synonyms
	Rhagoletis cingulata subsp. indifferens Curran;

Rhagoletis indifferens, the western cherry fruit fly, is a pest that lives only on cherries. The adult form of this insect is slightly smaller than a housefly, with white stripes across the abdomen, yellow markings near the base of the wings, and black markings on the wings. The larva, which is the stage of this insect's lifecycle that causes the actual damage to the fruit, is similar to a typical fly larva or maggot. Female flies lay eggs in the cherries, where the larvae feed for 1–2 weeks before exiting. Western cherry fruit flies damage fruit by feeding, in both the adult and larval stages.

Distribution[]

This species is found in southeastern British Columbia in Canada, and Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming in the United States. It has been introduced to Switzerland.

References[]

Washington State University Fact Sheet

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