The Mexican fruit fly (Mexfly), Anastrepha ludens (Loew) (Diptera: Tephritidae), poses a significant threat to citrus production in Mexico and the Lower Rio Grande Valley of south Texas. To address this issue, a Preventative Release Program utilizing a Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) is in place, releasing approximately 130 million sterile flies weekly to suppress wild populations and minimize the need for fumigation of exported fruit. In addition, field surveys and trapping efforts are operational in south Texas to monitor program success. Despite these efforts, wild Mexfly larvae continue to be detected in fruit collected through field surveys. Due to the time-consuming process of manual dissection, a study was conducted to investigate a method utilizing sieves to detect larvae efficiently. The study compared the current method of manually dissecting fruit by hand (hand separation) and a new method using sieves (sieve separation). Utilizing laboratory-reared Mexfly larvae, hand separation was time-consuming, 24.48 ± 9.12, n=6, while the sieve separation method, 6.02 ± 1.61, n=6, saved an average of approximately 17 minutes per fruit, totaling 28.3hrs from 100 infested fruits. Based on these findings, due to its potential time-saving benefits, the sieve separation method has been recommended for use in USDA APHIS PPQ program field surveys in south Texas citrus groves. Additional research is warranted to refine and optimize this method for practical application.