Life cycle of Metaseiulus camelliae and Zetzellia malvinae, predators of the rubber tree pest mite, Tenuipalpus heveae (Acari: Phytoseiidae, Stigmaeidae, Tenuipalpidae)
2007 - Volume: 47 Issue: 3-4 pages: 109-114
Keywords
mites
biological control
biology
Hevea brasiliensis
predators
Abstract
The objective of this work was to study the life cycle of Metaseiulus camelliae Chant and Yoshida Shaul and Zetzellia malvinae Matioli, Ueckermann and Oliveira when feeding on Tenuipalpus heveae Baker, one of the most harmful mites to rubber trees in the State of Sao Paulo, Brazil. The former 2 mite species are predators commonly found on leaves of rubber trees in Piracicaba, in the southwest of the State of Sao Paulo. The work was conducted at 25 t 0.5°C, 82 t 10% RH and 12 hours of photo phase a day. M. camelliae showed a higher reproductive potential than Z. malvinae (r,n = 0.101 and 0.077, respectively). Because of the slower population growth, Z. malvinae would seem to have an effect on the population of T. heveae at a later stage of the infestation than M. camelliae. The results suggest that both predators could be important in the control of T. heveae.
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