Is the Drosophila montium species group knocking on the doors of Europe? The case of the Asian fruit fly, Drosophila triauraria Bock & Wheeler, 1972

There is growing concern over the invasion of exotic insects into Europe, mostly due to global trade and warming.In September 2023 and 2024, fruit fly sampling was conducted in two orchard compost heaps in Poland (dzkie Voivodeship).The collected flies were subjected to molecular and morphological analysis, which has confirmed the occurrence of an Asian drosophilid species in Poland, Drosophila triauraria Bock & Wheeler, 1972 which belongs to the Drosophila auraria complex within the much larger Drosophila montium group.Drosophila triauraria or other species from the montium group had not been previously reported from Europe.Since we repeatedly caught individuals in the same locations over two consecutive seasons, the D. triauraria population is likely to be established in these sites in the future.