Mediterranean fruit fly

noun

1. a small, black and white, irregularly banded two-winged fly, Ceratitis capitata, of many warm regions, that damages citrus and other succulent fruit crops by implanting eggs that hatch into maggots within the fruit.

Mediterranean fruit fly

noun

1. a species of dipterous fly, Ceratitis capitata, having marbled wings, whose maggots tunnel into fruits such as citrus, peach, and vine in the Mediterranean area, South Africa, and elsewhere: family Trypetidae Also calledmedfly

Word History and Origins

Origin of Mediterranean fruit fly¹

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

In the early 1980s, in the 1990s, returning like a malarial fever, the enemy was the Medfly, the Mediterranean fruit fly — pest, parasite, glutton for our golden harvests, despoiler of sunny citrus and rosy peaches, murderer of guacamole avocados.

From Los Angeles Times

Mediterranean Fruit Fly: “Not according to Anita Bryant, no — they shouldn’t.”

From Los Angeles Times

The Mediterranean fruit fly, often known as the “Medfly”, is one of the most serious threats faced by farmers worldwide.

From NewsForKids.net

But last month, employees stripped dozens of them and placed them at the rear of the lot, away from the public, as part of an all-out quarantine effort aimed at eradicating one of the most destructive pests in the world: the Mediterranean fruit fly.

From Los Angeles Times

That case stemmed from former Gov. George Deukmejian’s 1989 executive order to begin aerial spraying of malathion in Los Angeles County because of an infestation of the crop-destroying Mediterranean fruit fly.

From Los Angeles Times