Assessing mating performance of male Glossina pallidipes (Diptera: Glossinidae) using a walk-in field cage

To monitor the quality of male tsetse for use in the sterile insect technique (SIT), a field cage test was developed and evaluated. Mating competitiveness was tested with male Glossina pallidipes Austen that emerged from pupae stored for different periods at 15 degrees C. Control males emerged from pupae stored at 23-24 degrees C and emerged at 26.5 degrees C. Each sample of test males was divided into two groups with one group being irradiated at 120 Gy; the other group was not irradiated. More than 70% of the maximum possible number of mating pairs occurred in all tests. Males emerged from pupae kept at low temperature and then irradiated formed a greater proportion of mating pairs than the controls. Males emerged from pupae kept at 15 degrees C generally started mating more quickly than the standard colony males although there was no significant difference. Insemination rates were above 99%. Pooled data indicated that mean spermathecal values for females mated with irradiated males were significantly lower than for control males. The duration of copulation varied significantly between treatment groups and was significantly longer for irradiated male flies; there was no correlation between duration of copulation and mean spermathecal value.