fruit fly, common name for any of the flies fly, name commonly used for any of a variety of winged insects , but properly restricted to members of the order Diptera, the true flies, which includes the housefly , gnat , midge , mosquito , and tsetse fly .
..... Click the link for more information. of the families Tephritidae and Drosophilidae. All fruit flies are very small insects insect, invertebrate animal of the class Insecta of the phylum Arthropoda . Like other arthropods, an insect has a hard outer covering, or exoskeleton, a segmented body, and jointed legs. Adult insects typically have wings and are the only flying invertebrates.
..... Click the link for more information. that lay their eggs in various plant tissues. The Tephritidae contains about 1,200 species characterized by wide heads, black or steely green or blue bodies, iridescent greenish eyes, and wings that are usually mottled brown or black. The eggs of most species are laid directly in the pulp of the fruit on which the larvae feed; in North America, blueberries, cherries, and apples are much damaged by these insects. In warm regions, the Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata, was a serious pest of citrus fruits; it has now been eradicated from the S United States. Some species, e.g., the goldenrod gall fly, Eurosta solidaginis, which deposits its eggs in species of goldenrod, lay their eggs in plants of no economic importance. The Drosophilidae, or pomace flies, are yellowish and in the wild are largely found around decaying vegetation. The larvae living in fruit actually feed on the yeasts growing in the fruit. Drosophila melanogaster, also called vinegar fly, is a much used laboratory insect; its 10-day life cycle and large chromosomes, particularly those of the salivary glands of the larva, have made it invaluable in the study of genetics genome, or characteristic set of genes, that contains the total genetic information for an individual organism. In many familiar organisms two genes for each trait are present in each individual, and these paired genes, both governing the same trait, are called

alleles.
..... Click the link for more information. . Fruit flies are classified in the phylum Arthropoda Arthropoda (ärthrŏp`ədə) [Gr.,=jointed feet], largest and most diverse animal phylum.
..... Click the link for more information. , class Insecta, order Diptera, families Tephritidae and Drosophilidae.

fruit fly

Fruit fly (Trypetidae)

(credit: E.S. Ross)

Any dipteran species of two families: large fruit flies (Trypetidae) and small fruit flies, or vinegar flies (family Drosophilidae; see drosophila). The larvae feed on fruit or other vegetation. The adults' wings are banded or spotted with brown. Many species attack cultivated fruits, sometimes causing enough damage to create significant economic loss. Some species are leaf miners; others burrow in plant stems. Well-known fruit-fly pests include the Mediterranean fruit fly and the apple maggot of the U.S., the Mexican and Oriental fruit flies, and the olive fruit fly of the Mediterranean region.