TY  - JOUR
JF  - Acarologia
T1  - Diversity and distribution of Eriophyid mites (Acari: Eriophyoidea) in the coastal region of Syria
VL  - 66
IS  - Suppl
SP  - 107
EP  - 107
PY  - 2026
SN  - 0044-586X
SN  - 2107-7207
PB  - Les Amis d'Acarologia
AU  - Angham, Boubou
UR  - https://doi.org/10.24349/1ob2-m92j
DO  - 10.24349/1ob2-m92j
DA  - 2026-07-20
ET  - 2026-07-20
KW  - Eriophyoidea
KW  - Checklist
KW  - Syria
KW  - New records
KW  - Weeds
AB  - The Eriophyoid mites are a highly diverse group of phytophagous and ranking second to the spider mites in economic importance. Globally, approximately 5000 species are described and a huge number of species still need to be discovered. To date, Syrian eriophyoid fauna remains poorly documented, and only nine species were previously reported on economic crops, mostly based on damage symptoms, while lacking morphological identification, locality data or deposited voucher specimens. To address this knowledge gaps, the present study investigated the diversity of eriophyoid mites associated with both cultivated and wild plants in the Syrian coastal region. Surveys were conducted across 33 distinct sites within the Latakia and Tartus governates between 2017 and 2024. A total of 83 plant samples with symptomatic and non-symptomatic eriophyoid infestations were collected. Mites were prepared and slide mounted for morphological analysis. Morphometric measurements (µm) and figures of relevant taxonomic structures were taken using an attached digital camera (OPTIKA C-B10, 10 megapixels, Italy) and analyzed using the OPTIKA PROVIEW software (version x64, 4.11.18081.20201205). Host plant data, symptoms, geographical distribution and GPS coordinates are provided for each sample. Voucher specimens were deposited as slide mounted specimens at the Plant Protection researches laboratory, Faculty of Agricultural Engineering, Latakia University (previously, Tishreen), Latakia, Syria. Morphological examination revealed 24 eriophyid species belonging to three subfamilies: Eriophyinae, Cecidophyinae and Phyllocoptinae. Among these, 12 species represent new records for the Syrian fauna: Aceria ficus (Cotte) on Ficus carica, A. ilicis (Canestrini) on Quercus calliprinos, Aceria oxalidis (Trotter) on Oxalis corniculata, Aceria lividus Elhalawany on Amaranthus lividus, Aceria malherbae Nuzzaci on Convolvulus arvensis, Aceria massalongoi (Canestrini) on Vitex agnus-castus, Aceria stefanii (Nalepa) on Pistacia palaestina, Cecidophyes rouhollahi Craemer on Galium aparine, Cecidophyopsis hendersoni (Keifer) on Yucca spp., Colomerus gardeniella (Keifer) on Gardenia jasminoides, Vittacus bougainvilleae (Keifer) on Bougainvillea glabra and Tegolophus hassani (Keifer) on Olea europaea. The genus Aceria was the most widespread and diverse with 14 species, including three unidentified taxa collected from Acer syriacum, Quercus infectoria and Rubus fruticosus. While these three taxa do not match any known national records, and potentially represent either new country records or novel species, their definitive status awaits further taxonomic and molecular resolution. This study updates the Syrian Eriophyidae checklist, enhancing the national biodiversity documentation and highlighting the necessity for extensive future surveys due to the country’s unique geography and rich flora.
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