Hello Wilson:

The best way to obtain a lab colony of the oriental fruit moth Grapholita molesta (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) from the field is collecting infested fruits of peach, green small apples and pears. Rear the larvae inside enclosed mesh containers to obtain enough adults (males and females).  Also you can obtain adults with UV ligths in the field. Put the adults inside a cage with  a  cheesecloth-lined wooden mating chamber  (30 x  16  x  17 cm). Put a piece of  Plexiglas slid into grooves running along its  length  positioned  on  the  front  open side with a feed 15-cm roll  of  wax  paper stretched across the chamber's  open face between  the Plexiglas and  the interior.  The moths attracted to the light, rest and  laid eggs on the wax paper  Eggs can be removed from the chamber interior daily by  pulling the wax  paper, simultaneously replacing  the  eggsheet for  the  next day.  Eggsheets can be washed in a weak  formalde hyde solution (approximately 1%) for  30 s, rinsed, air  dried, and stored at 25°C.

Yokohama et.al (1987) developed a formulated diet using small lima beans for rearing the oriental fruit moth. Please find attached the mass rearing protocol in this paper by  Vetter et. al. 1989.

Good luck,

Luis Miguel

Hello Wilson:

The best way to obtain a lab colony of the oriental fruit moth Grapholita molesta (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) from the field is collecting infested fruits of peach, green small apples and pears. Rear the larvae inside enclosed mesh containers to obtain enough adults (males and females).  Also you can obtain adults with UV ligths in the field. Put the adults inside a cage with  a  cheesecloth-lined wooden mating chamber  (30 x  16  x  17 cm). Put a piece of  Plexiglas slid into grooves running along its  length  positioned  on  the  front  open side with a feed 15-cm roll  of  wax  paper stretched across the chamber's  open face between  the Plexiglas and  the interior.  The moths attracted to the light, rest and  laid eggs on the wax paper  Eggs can be removed from the chamber interior daily by  pulling the wax  paper, simultaneously replacing  the  eggsheet for  the  next day.  Eggsheets can be washed in a weak  formalde hyde solution (approximately 1%) for  30 s, rinsed, air  dried, and stored at 25°C.

Yokohama et.al (1987) developed a formulated diet using small lima beans for rearing the oriental fruit moth. Please find attached the mass rearing protocol in this paper by  Vetter et. al. 1989.

Good luck,

Luis Miguel

Thank very much Luis.

I see that you are already able to rear OFM and Luis Miguel Constantino gave you useful suggestion. I have reared OFM for a long time, and in case we can discuss special topics; in the case of domestication, a general trick is to give a natural odor in the oviposition cage. I used to put adults in a plastic bottle, cutting the bottom away and closing this side with a net. Once or twice a week I transferred the insects in a new similar bottle. The eggs are deposited on the inner surface of the bottle and you can easily cut the bottle in pieces.

Here there is a diet that you can try, McMorran Diet.

Thanks Fabio and Esteban