Color preference of the spotted wing Drosophila, Drosophila suzukii

<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><i>Drosophila suzukii</i> Matsumura (Diptera: Drosophilidae) is a significant invasive pest in soft-skin fruits and berries in Asia, Europe, and North and South America. Many herbivorous insects use multiple cues for host selection, particularly olfactory and visual stimuli. The visual system of closely-related <i>Drosophila melanogaster</i> is well-documented, expressing strong sensitivity to short-wavelength colors (ultraviolet to green) and only limited sensitivity to long-wavelength colors (red to infrared). <a name="_Hlk14941109">Our results suggest that <i>D. suzukii</i> have limited ability to distinguish red consistent with visual sensitivity range within the melanogaster subgroup. </a>We propose that color contrast rather than color appearance may be of greater importance in orientation and attraction. We propose that differences in reflectance between light wavelengths important for color opponency are key to color discrimination to provide color contrast between foreground and background, as occurs between fruit and foliage, during host-finding.</p>