Marina Yakovlevna Orlova-Benkovskaya, senior researcher at IEE RAS, and Andrei Olegovich Benkovsky, senior researcher at IEE RAS, revealed a new pest in the Russian Caucasus a year ago - the Asian fruit fly Drosophila suzukii. It is an invasive species native to East Asia. First, it was transported through fruit to Europe, and in 2014 - to Crimea.
Spotted wing drosophila can cause great damage to fruit farms. Drosophila females use their ovipositor to lay eggs under the skin of the fruit. More than 60 types of berries and fruits are under threat, as well as wineries - these flies also damage grapes.
The scientific community has been detecting the Drosophila suzukii in Russia since the beginning of the 21st century. “The Asian fruit fly Drosophila suzukii, a quarantine pest of fruit growing, was previously recorded in two regions of Russia: in the Primorsky Territory in 2001 and in the Crimea in 2014–2015. These findings are included in the database of the European and Mediterranean Organization for Plant Quarantine (EPPO),” says Marina Yakovlevna Orlova-Benkovskaya.
In 2017 and 2020, IEE RAS scientists placed bait traps in different districts of the city of Sochi and collected 49 specimens of this Drosophila. They were identified by the typical female ovipositor, male spotted wings, and other features. The research results were published in the scientific journal "Insects". After information about the discovery of the fruit fly in Sochi appeared in the media, the Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Supervision (Rosselkhoznadzor) published an official explanation that the fruit fly was allegedly absent in Russia at all. The finds in Primorye and Crimea are not mentioned in this Rosselkhoznadzor report, and the find in Sochi is questioned, since the identification of the specimens was not verified by official EPPO experts.
The staff of IEE RAS contacted the experts of the EPPO (European-Mediterranean Organization for Plant Protection) and sent them 10 specimens collected in Sochi for verification. Experts have verified the data. Last week, the organization's bulletin published an official international confirmation of the discovery of the spotted wing drosophila (Drosophila suzukii) in the Caucasus.