fruit fly
Noun
Meaning
any of numerous small insects whose larvae feed on fruits
Source: WordNetSynonyms
Hypernyms
Hyponyms
Examples
Another method, useful in organisms such as Drosophila (fruit fly), is to induce mutations in a large population and then screen the progeny for the desired mutation.
Long, slender eggs are laid inside of the fruit by the female papaya fruit fly.
Pests The papaya fruit fly is mainly yellow with black marks.
For example, a rabbit (mature after 8 months) can produce 10–30 offspring per year, and a fruit fly (mature after 10–14 days) can produce up to 900 offspring per year.
Other countries, including New Zealand, Australia, Thailand, India, and Mexico, have permitted the irradiation of fresh fruits for fruit fly quarantine purposes, amongst others.
Quotation from p 213. Because of Morgan's dramatic success with Drosophila, many other labs throughout the world took up fruit fly genetics.