APHIS Modifies the Mexican Fruit Fly (Anastrepha ludens) Quarantine Areas in Cameron County, Texas

FOR INFORMATION AND ACTION

DA-2022-05

January 28, 2022

 

Subject:           APHIS Modifies the Mexican Fruit Fly (Anastrepha ludens) Quarantine Areas in Cameron County, Texas

To:                  State and Territory Agricultural Regulatory Officials

Effective November 18, 2021, the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) modified the areas under quarantine in Cameron County, Texas. In the Brownsville Mexican fruit fly (Mexfly) quarantine, APHIS and TDA released approximately 345 square miles after three Mexfly life cycles elapsed with no additional detections in this area. This reduction caused the quarantined area to become two smaller quarantined areas, designated the Brownsville Quarantine and the Bayview Quarantine. The Brownsville Quarantine now encompasses 36.3 sq. mi. with 3.4 acres of commercial citrus. The Bayview Quarantine encompasses 65 sq. mi with 416 acres of commercial citrus. Additionally, following the confirmed detection of a mated adult wild female Mexfly, the Harlingen Quarantine increased from 100 sq. mi. to 126 sq. mi with approximately 1,619 acres of commercial citrus. APHIS is applying safeguarding measures and restrictions on the interstate movement or entry into foreign trade of regulated articles from this area.

APHIS and TDA established the original Cameron County quarantine following the confirmed detections, between January 14 and February 3, 2020, of 80 adult Mexflies and 14 Mexfly larval sites in citrus from various residential areas and two commercial groves. By establishing the quarantine, APHIS and TDA restricted interstate movement of regulated articles from this area to prevent the spread of Mexfly to non-infested areas of the United States. APHIS works cooperatively with TDA to eradicate transient Mexfly populations through various control actions per program protocols.

The following website contains a description of all the current Federal fruit fly quarantine areas:

http://www.aphis.usda.gov/plant-health/ff-quarantine.

For additional information on the Mexfly quarantine area, please contact Fruit Fly National

Policy Manager, Richard Johnson, at (301) 851-2109 or richard.n.johnson@usda.gov.

 

/s/

Mark L Davidson, DVM, MS

Acting Deputy Administrator

Plant Protection and Quarantine