Scientific Name : Zeugodacus cucurbitae (Coquillett)

Common Name:  Melon Fruit Fly

Taxonomic position

Class :  Insect

Order:  Diptera

Family:  Tephritidae

Genus:  Bactrocera

Species:   cucurbitae                   

Host :  Cucumber, pumpkin, angled luffa, luffa, bitter       gourd, snake gourd, okra, polyphagous

Distribution:  Africa South and South-East Asia Australasian Oceanian

Body: Body predominantly orangish to brown.

Head: Face undulating, convex above, concave below. Number of pale whitish to yellow post sutural stripes three.

Thorax:  Sub scutellum uniformly brown, Predominant colour of scutum red-brown. Scutum with parallel sided lateral post sutural vittae, yellow in colour, which extend anterior to suture and posteriorly to level of the intra-alar setae. Medial vitta present; not extended anterior to suture.  Scutellum yellow, except for narrow basal band.

Legs: All femora pale basally, red-brown apically.

Wings :  Wings with cross vein r-m covered by short, diffuse infuscation, or covered by short, well-defined infuscation. Cross vein dm-cu covered by a major cross band which reaches posterior margin of wing.

Abdomen : Abdominal terga III-V orange-brown except for a narrow transverse black band across anterior margin of tergum III which expands over anterolateral corners.  A narrow medial longitudinal dark fuscous to black band over all three terga and anterolateral corners of terga IV and V fuscous Posterior lobe of male surstylus long; female with aculeus needle shaped