Biological studies of the Australian predatory mite Typhlodromalus lailae (Schicha) (Acari: Phytoseiidae)

Abstract

The biology of the Australian phytoseiid mite Typhlodromalus lailae is described from material collected in Western Australia and New South Wales in 1994. At 25 ° C, when fed on cumbungi ( Typha sp.) pollen, the life cycle is completed in approximately 6 days, with an intrinsic rate of natural increase ( r m ), of 0.38. Female-male pairs produced a mean total of 44.6 eggs within 22 days of oviposition, with 39% of these females living in excess of 29 days. Females that were deprived of males after first mating stopped laying eggs after 4-9 days, but if another male was added they resumed egg laying and produced close to a full complement of eggs (mean 42 eggs). At 25 ° C, fecundity on a diet of cumbungi pollen or thrips larvae (first-instar Frankliniella schutzei Trybom) was high, averaging 3.71 and 3.33 eggs per day, respectively, over a 3-day period. The sex ratio was approximately 1.5 females to 1 male. Consumption rate of thrips was also high, with an average of approximately seven first-instar or two second-instar F. schultzei larvae eaten per day. The species was also observed to feed on broad mite, Polyphagotarsonemus latus (Banks), and tomato russet mite, Aculops lycopersici (Massee). No diapause was observed under conditions of 25 ° C 8 h light and 10 ° C 16 h dark. Eggs were sensitive to low humidity, with 50% failing to hatch below 71.1% relative humidity. This species is of interest as a candidate biological control agent for thrips, broad mite and tomato russet mite in protected crops.

Amblydromalus limonicus (Acari: Phytoseiidae) as a biocontrol agent: literature review and new findings

“…pollen and 3.3 on first-instar Frankliniella schultzei Trybom larvae. Adult females consumed around 7 first instar thrips larvae per day (Steiner et al, 2003). With F. occidentalis as prey similar predation rates (6.9 first instar larvae per day) are reported (Van Houten et al, 1995a).…”

“…Amblydromalus limonicus is distributed widely in temperate to subtropical regions of North, Central and South America, and also present in Hawaii, New Zealand (Moraes et al, 2004) and Australia (Steiner et al, 2003;Steiner and Goodwin 2005). The habitat range of A. limonicus is restricted to areas with moderate temperature and relatively high relative humidity.…”

“…Egg to adult development took about 6 days at 22.2°C on citrus red mite as well as pollen, and the preoviposition period was 2.5 days (McMurtry and Scriven, 1965). The intrinsic rate of increase of an Australian population of A. limonicus (named Typhlodromalus lailae in the original publication (Steiner et al, 2003) but later re-identified as A. limonicus (Steiner and Goodwin, 2005)) at 25°C on Typha sp. pollen was 0.38.…”

Efecto de la humedad relativa en la viabilidad de huevos de Neoseiulus sp. y Proprioseiopsis iorgius (Acari: Phytoseiidae) en condiciones de laboratorio

“…en el norte de Chile. Por otro lado, la baja tolerancia de los huevos de P. iorgius a una menor humedad relativa expresada en su HR 50 es similar a la mostrada por Typhlodromus lailae (Schicha) (71,1%, 9,1 hPa) (Steiner et al, 2003a). La eficiencia de los controladores biológicos es a menudo afectada por condiciones locales tales como la humedad relativa baja.…”

“…En Sudamérica, el fitoseido Euseius citrifolius Denmark & Muma ha demostrado una alta tolerancia de sus huevos a la baja humedad relativa, similar a Neoseiulus sp., registrando para 30 y 40% HR (22,2 y 19,0 hPa, respectivamente), porcentajes de eclosión de larvas de 30 ± 10% y 57 ± 7%, a una temperatura de 25 ºC (De Vis et al, 2006). Steiner et al (2003a) indican que alta humedad que requieren los huevos de T. lailae para eclosionar sugiere que esta especie podría ser utilizada en situaciones donde los huevos no estén sometidos a humedades extremadamente bajas y además la HR exceda el 70% durante varias horas en el día. De esta manera P. iorgius podría ser utilizado en condiciones ambientales de baja humedad, considerando que en la naturaleza los niveles de humedad rara vez permanecen constantes durante el día y los huevos podrían estar adaptados para tolerar estas fluctuaciones de humedad.…”