Background: The main challenge to the successful mass-rearing of the tsetse fly in insectaries, especially in Africa, is a sustainable supply of high-quality blood meals. As such, the collection of high-quality blood in large quantities can be an important constraint to production. One possible strategy to lessen the impact of this constraint is to modify the blood-feeding frequency. In the study reported here, we evaluated the effect of three blood-feeding frequencies on the colony performance of Glossina palpalis gambiensis, a riverine tsetse fly species.
Methods: The effect of three, four and six blood-feedings per week on female survival and productivity were evaluated over a 30-day period. Progeny emergence rate and flight ability were also evaluated.
Results: Female survival was significantly higher in flies fed four times per week (87%) than in those fed three (72%) and six times per week (78%; P < 0.05). Productivity was similar between flies fed four and six times per week (457 and 454 larvae) but significantly reduced in flies fed three times per week (280 larvae produced; P < 0.05). Both emergence rate and flight ability rate were also similar between flies fed four times per week (97 and 94%, respectively) and six times per week (96 and 97%, respectively), but they were significantly reduced when flies were fed three times per week (89 and 84%, respectively; P < 0.05).
Conclusions: Blood-feeding frequency could be reduced from six times per week to four times per week without affecting mass-rearing production and progeny quality. The implications of these results on tsetse mass-rearing production are discussed.
Keywords: Emergence rate; Flight ability; Productivity; Survival; Tsetse fly.