A Mediterranean fruit fly infestation has recently been discovered in Rancho Palos Verdes and Rolling Hills. To date, four wild female Medflies have been detected at two separate locations.
This past weekend, the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) began eradication procedures in the area. The CDFA increased aerial releases of sterile male Medflies, at the rate of 250,000 sterile flies per square mile. The release area is 12.86 square miles. CDFA crews also began conducting ground treatments in a 200-meter radius from the locations of the detections.
Rancho Palos Verdes and Rolling Hills are already part of the Preventive Release Program, a joint USDA/CDFA project that releases millions of sterile male Medflies each week over the Los Angeles Basin. The program was introduced in 1996 and has been instrumental in redefining Medfly response in California. It has also dramatically reduced the number of infestations. Between 1987 and 1994, an average of 7.5 Medfly infestations was discovered each year in California, but since the Program began in 1996, there have been just seven infestations statewide. Three of the seven have been detected this year.
This is the first Medfly infestation in Los Angeles County since 2001, when flies were found in the Hyde Park area. That infestation was successfully eradicated using the same techniques that were utilized for the current infestation. The Medfly can infest over 260 types of fruits and vegetables, causing severe impacts on California agricultural exports and backyard gardens. A permanent infestation would result in estimated annual losses of $1.3 to $1.8 billion.