Taxonomy
Valid name:
Bactrocera (
Bactrocera)
murrayi (Perkins, 1939)
Preferred common name: Murray's fruit fly
Synonyms:
Daculus murrayi (original combination in Perkins, 1939)
Dacus murrayi (subsequent combination in Hardy, 1951)
Morphology-based identification
Bactrocera murrayi can be identified reliably based on morphology. Spot characters are an overall light orange color and a wide mesopleural stripe that reaches the level of ia. seta.
Molecular identification
COI sequence data can be used to reliably identify
B. murrayi, partial reference sequences are available from
Starkie et al. (2022a)Starkie et al. (2022a):
Starkie ML, Cameron SL, Krosch MN, Phillips MJ, Royer JE, Schutze MK, Strutt F, Sweet AD, Zalucki MP, Clarke AR, 2022. A comprehensive phylogeny helps clarify the evolutionary history of host breadth and lure response in the Australian Dacini fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 172: 107481. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2022.107481 .
Distribution
Bactrocera murrayi has been recorded from the Solomon Islands, New Guinea, and Queensland in Australia. Its native range is unclear.
Further information
Bactrocera murrayi is classified as a "category D" pest of mango and surinam cherry in Australia and New Guinea in
Vargas et al. (2015)Vargas et al. (2015):
Vargas RI, Pinero JC, Leblanc L, 2015. An overview of pest species of Bactrocera fruit flies (Diptera: Tephritidae) and the integration of biopesticides with other biological approaches for their management with a focus on the pacific region. Insects 6: 297–318. https://doi.org/10.3390/insects6020297. A category D pest is there defined as "species that have been occasionally bred from commercial/edible fruit or cucurbits". Surinam cherry is native to Central and South America.
