APHIS Establishes and Expands the Mediterranean Fruit Fly (Ceratitis capitata) Quarantine in Santa Clara County, California

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FOR INFORMATION AND ACTION 
DA-2025- 35 
August 27, 2025 

Subject: APHIS Establishes and Expands the Mediterranean Fruit Fly (Ceratitis capitata) Quarantine in Santa Clara County, California 

To: State, Tribal, and Territory Agricultural Regulatory Officials 

On August 19, 2025, the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) established a Mediterranean fruit fly (Ceratitis capitata; Medfly) quarantine in Santa Clara County, California, designated the Santa Clara quarantine. On August 22, APHIS and CDFA expanded this quarantine. 

APHIS and CDFA established the Santa Clara Medfly quarantine in response to the confirmed detections of two wild female Medflies in the city of San Jose. The first was on August 11 from a trap in a peach tree on a residential property and the second on August 12 from a trap in an orange tree on a residential property. APHIS and CDFA expanded this quarantine by nine miles following the detection of an additional wild female Medfly in San Jose on August 14 in a trap located in a peach tree on a residential property. The quarantine encompasses approximately 118 square miles with 22 acres of commercial agriculture, including pepper, stone fruit, and tomato. 

APHIS is applying safeguarding measures and restrictions on the interstate movement of regulated articles to prevent the spread of Medfly to non-infested areas of the United States, as well as to prevent the entry of these fruit flies into foreign trade. APHIS is working with CDFA and the Agricultural Commissioner for Santa Clara County to respond to these detections following program guidelines for survey, treatment, and regulatory actions. 

The APHIS Exotic Fruit Flies web page contains descriptions of all current Federal fruit fly quarantine areas. APHIS will publish a notice of this change in the Federal Register. 

For additional information, you may contact: 

/s/

Matthew A. Rhoads 
Acting Deputy Administrator 
Plant Protection and Quarantine