Kamayev, Ilya ¹ ; Zhuravleva, Elena ² and Karpun, Natalia ³

¹✉ All-Russian Plant Quarantine Center (“VNIIKR”), Bykovo (Moscow Oblast); Tyumen State University, Tyumen; Russia.
²Federal Research Centre the Subtropical Scientific Centre of the Russian Academy of Sciences (FRC SSC of RAS), Sochi, Russia.
³Federal Research Centre the Subtropical Scientific Centre of the Russian Academy of Sciences (FRC SSC of RAS), Sochi, Russia.

2025 - Volume: 65 Issue: 3 pages: 782-785

Short note

Keywords

Abstract

Introduction

The climate conditions of some regions of Russia are favorable for the introduction of a wide range of agricultural and ornamental crops. Thermophilic plants such as various species of palm tree (Arecaceae), the tea plant (Camellia sinensis (L.) Kuntze), bamboo and many others are able to grow in Sochi, an urbanized area of the Black Sea coast of the Western Caucasus, due to the fact that part of this territory is located in humid subtropical conditions. In the unique conditions of Sochi, bioinvasions of 60 phytophagous arthropod species have been reliably recorded over the past 15 years of constant observations by specialists from the Subtropical Scientific Center (FRC SSC) of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Karpun, 2019; Karpun et al., 2024).

In 2021, plant protection and entomology specialists first observed unusual symptoms of damage to bamboo plants Phyllostachys reticulata (Rupr.) K. Koch (Poaceae), which are widely planted in Sochi for decorative purposes. The study of the plant material collected in 2024 revealed two alien spider mite species that are new to the fauna of Russia.

Materials and methods

The study was initiated and organized by N. Karpun on the basis of FRC SSC, Sochi. The collections were carried out by E. Zhuravleva on ornamental plants of bamboo P. reticulata in Sochi (Krasnodar Krai, Russia) in 2024. The leaves with mites were preserved in 70% ethanol. Microscopic preparations were made with Hoyer's medium (Walter and Krantz, 2009). The mites were identified by I. Kamayev under transmitted light using phase-contrast (PH) and DIC microscopes of ZEISS Axio Imager 2 and Levenhuk MED D45T LCD and with the literature sources (Mitrofanov et al., 1987; Bolland et al., 1998; Saito et al., 2004, 2019; Auger et al., 2023). Photography and subsequent processing of the illustrations were carried out using Zen 2.3, Zerene Stacker, and GIMPT 2.10.30.

The materials and slides are stored in the acarological collection of the All-Russian Plant Quarantine Center (''VNIIKR'') and in the personal collection of I. Kamayev (Moscow, Russia).

Results and discussion

Family Tetranychidae Donnadieu, 1875

Subfamily Tetranychinae Berlese, 1913

Tribe Eurytetranychini Reck, 1950

Genus Aponychus Rimando, 1966

Type-species: Aponychus corpuzae Rimando, 1966

Aponychus corpuzae Rimando, 1966

Figure 1A–B

Material examined — 7 females, 4 males collected on Phyllostachys reticulata (Poaceae), ornamental plantings, (43.5974°N 39.7642°E, alt. 129 m a.s.l.), Sochi, 1-VII-2024 and 30-IX-2024.

Distinctive characters (according to Auger et al., 2023) — The dorsocentral setae c1, d1 and e1 are short (Fig. 1A). The seta c1 is obviously shorter than the distance between c1 bases. The seta f1 is slightly shorter than the seta h1. The seta f2 is very short, setiform and in ventral position (Fig. 1B).

Note about host plants — This species has been recorded on about 20 species of host plants, most of which belong to the Poaceae (Migeon and Dorkeld, 2025). Seljak (2015) recorded this mite species on P. reticulata for the first time [according to Catalogue of Life (Bánki et al. 2025), the Latin name P. bambusoides Siebold & Zucc. is a junior synonym of P. reticulata]. Our data also confirm this trophic association of A. corpuzae.

Remarks — Aponychus corpuzae is known from East, Southeast and South Asia (Migeon and Dorkeld, 2025). In 2012, it was first recorded in western and central Europe: Italy and Slovenia (Seljak 2015), later in France (Auger et al., 2023).

It should be noted that prior to our study and since the work of Mitrofanov et al. (1987), the species of the genus Aponychus were unknown in the fauna of Russia and neighboring countries.

Tribe Tetranychini Reck, 1950

Genus Stigmaeopsis Banks, 1917

Type-species: Stigmaeopsis celarius Banks, 1917

Stigmaeopsis nanjingensis (Ma & Yuan, 1980)

Figure 1C–D

Material examined — 17 females, 7 males collected on Phyllostachys reticulata, ornamental plantings, (43.5974°N 39.7642°E, alt. 129 m a.s.l.), Sochi, 1-VII-2024 and 30-IX-2024. 4 females, 1 male collected on P. reticulata, ornamental plantings, (43.5682°N 39.7474°E, alt. 33 m a.s.l.), Sochi, 4-VII-2024.

Distinctive characters (according to Saito et al., 2019) — The length of the seta d1 is longer than than the distance between the bases of d1 setae (Fig. 1C). The distance between the bases of the e1 setae is approximately equal to that between the bases of d1 setae.

The aedeagus of S. nanjingensis is shown in Figure 1D.

Note about host plants — Our data confirm the trophic association of this species with P. reticulata as previously noted in the work of Auger and Migeon (2007).

Remarks — Stigmaeopsis nanjingensis was described from China (Ma and Yuan, 1980) and, in recent decades, it has been recorded in European countries: France (Auger and Migeon, 2007; Auger et al., 2023), Italy (Pellizzari and Duso, 2009), Hungary (Kontschan, Nemenyi, 2013), Portugal (Naves et al., 2021).

It should be noted that prior to our study and since the work of Mitrofanov et al. (1987), S. nanjingensis was unknown in the fauna of Russia and neighboring countries.

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Dr. K. Klemeshova for the confirmation of bamboo species identification and Dr. N. Kirichenko for the information about the first observations of symptoms on bamboo. Special thanks to the editor P. Auger, who gave valuable advice that contributed to the improvement of the publication's manuscript.

This study was partly carried out within the framework of the agreements on scientific cooperation between All-Russian Plant Quarantine Center, Bykovo, and the Federal Research Centre the Subtropical Scientific Centre of The Russian Academy of Sciences, Sochi (№NC-18/02, 15.01.2018). The research of I. Kamayev was supported by the Russian Science Foundation, grant № 25-14-00118. Phytosanitary monitoring of plantings in Sochi was carried out as part of implementation of the scientific task of FRC SSC of RAS FGRW-2025-0002, registration number 125021202045-8.

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