Field testing of a Prototype Acoustic device for detection of Mediterranean Fruit Flies Flying into a trap

An instrument that identifies Mediterranean fruit flies entering a trap by detecting and discriminating their wingbeat sounds from background noises was developed and tested in an anechoic chamber and in field environments. Although the system works well in the absence of background noise, it has some difficulty identifying the wingbeats in high levels of background noise, and additional versions of the instrument are under development to improve operations in high-noise environments.