Country: United States

Title:

APHIS Expands the Zeugodacus tau Fruit Fly Quarantine in the Stevenson Ranch Area, Los Angeles County, California

Contact:
Richard Johnson, Fruit Fly National Policy Manager, at (301) 851-2109 or richard.n.johnson@usda.gov

Report:

On August 15, 2023, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) expanded the Zeugodacus tau fruit fly quarantine in the Stevenson Ranch area of Los Angeles County, California. This action is in response to the confirmed detections of twenty adult flies from various trapping sites in the Stevenson Ranch area by CDFA between August 2 to August 10; all were from traps in residential areas. As a results of these detections, the Stevenson Ranch area quarantine increased by 26 square miles to 105 square miles. There is no commercial agriculture in the quarantine area.

APHIS and CDFA established the original Z. tau quarantine following the confirmed detection of nine flies from three trapping sites in the Stevenson Ranch area between June 7 and July 6. APHIS is applying safeguarding measures and restrictions on the interstate movement or entry into foreign trade of regulated articles from the area to prevent the spread of Z. tau fruit fly to non-infested areas of the United States. APHIS is working with CDFA and the Los Angeles County Agricultural Commission to respond to these detections following program guidelines for survey, treatment, and regulatory response.

The expansion of this quarantine is reflected on the following website, which contains a description of all current Federal fruit fly quarantine areas:

http://www.aphis.usda.gov/plant-health/ff-quarantine

Under IPPC standards, Zeugodacus tau is a transient pest under eradication that is present only in one area in California. This species is not widely distributed and is under official control in the United States.

Posted Date: Aug. 30, 2023, 11:40 a.m.