mediterranean fruit fly

Mediterranean fruit fly
    n 1: small black-and-white fly that damages citrus and other
         fruits by implanting eggs that hatch inside the fruit [syn:
         {Mediterranean fruit fly}, {medfly}, {Ceratitis capitata}]
    

Mediterranean fruit fly \Med`i*ter*ra"ne*an fruit" fly\, n.
   A small two-winged fly ({Ceratitis capitata}), a native of
   the Mediterranean countries but now widely distributed in
   warm regions, which can cause great damage to citrus and
   other succulent fruit crops when present in large numbers. It
   is black and white and irregularly banded. It lays eggs in
   ripening oranges, peaches, and other fruits; when the eggs
   hatch into larvae (maggots) inside the fruit, they cause the
   fruit to decay and fall, and make the fruit unsaleable. It is
   also popularly called the {medfly}.

   Note: The possibility of infestation by this and other crop
         pests has caused some states such as California, where
         fruit is a major export, to ban the importation of
         fruit from other regions. Outbreaks of infestation with
         the medfly have caused California to mobilize major
         eradication campaigns and have been the subject of
         political faultfinding. The eradication tactic, of
         releasing sterile males to break the reproductive
         cycle, has been used to deal with outbreaks of the
         medfly.
         [PJC]