The tenuipalpid mite Tenuipalus heveae Baker has caused considerable damage to leaves of rubber tree, Hevea brasiliensis (Muell. Arg), in parts of central and southern Brazil. The development and the reproduction of T. heveae were studied under laboratory conditions at 28 deg C in the light phase (12 h), 25 deg C in the dark phase and 70+/-10% RH, on excised leaves of rubber tree clone PB 260. The egg stage was almost as long as the mobile immature stages combined, and the total duration of the pre-imaginal phase was ca. 30 days. This duration is comparable to that observed for other tenuipalpid species. The peak oviposition rate was ca. 1.4 eggs per female per day, and the average fecundity was 34 eggs per female. Females corresponded to ca. 85+/-0.4% of the population. The intrinsic rate of increase was 0.08 egg per female per day and the mean generation time was 44.5 days. The low value of rm and the high population levels observed in parts of the area of distribution of T. heveae indicate the absence of effective natural enemies of that species.