TY  - JOUR
JF  - Acarologia
T1  - Compatibility of bioacaricides with phytoseiid mites - what we (don’t) know?
VL  - 66
IS  - Suppl
SP  - 83
EP  - 83
PY  - 2026
SN  - 0044-586X
SN  - 2107-7207
PB  - Les Amis d'Acarologia
AU  - Dejan, Marčić
AU  - Ismail, Döker
AU  - Haralabos, Tsolakis
UR  - https://doi.org/10.24349/2otz-s7se
DO  - 10.24349/2otz-s7se
DA  - 2026-07-20
ET  - 2026-07-20
KW  - Biopesticides
KW  - Predatory mites
KW  - Selectivity
KW  - Crop protection
KW  - IPM
AB  - Biopesticides are pest control agents, formulated and applied in a manner similar to synthetic chemical pesticides, and based on living organisms (microorganisms) and biomolecules (biochemicals of microbial, plant or animal origin). Bioacaricides are biopesticide products used in crop protection against plant-feeding mites. The leading microorganism-based bioacaricides are mycoacaricides, products manufactured from living propagules of acaropathogenic fungi. Among biochemical-based products, the most widely used are plant secondary metabolites (azadirachtin, pyrethrum, essential oils), and fermentation products of soil actinomycetes (abamectin, spinosad). When biopesticides are recommended as an alternative to synthetics, one of the advantages often highlighted is their greater safety for biological control agents (BCAs) i.e. the pests’ predators and parasitoids. Is such a general perception justified regarding bioacaricides and predatory mites from the family Phytoseiidae, the most important BCAs among mites? To answer that question the literature was searched using the Google Scholar internet browser (articles in English, published after the year 2000, dealing with commercial bioacaricide products) using the search terms ‘biopesticide’, ‘Phytoseiidae’, ‘effect’, ‘compatibility’, ‘selectivity’ in combinations with ‘botanical’, ‘microbial’, ‘mycopesticides’, ‘actinomycetes’. Relevant studies evaluating compatibility of bioacaricides with phytoseiids, found in the collected articles, were classified based on the methods and the endpoints used. Out of the 65 relevant studies, more than 75% were conducted in the laboratory, of which about 50% with the species Phytoseiulus persimilis, Amblyseius swirskii and Neoseiulus californicus. The largest amount of data has come from studies with abamectin, spinosad and azadirachtin. There have been conflicting reports on compatibility, especially for bioacaricides with neurotoxic modes of action (abamectin, spinosad, pyrethrum, some essential oils). Greenhouse and field trials have shown that, under certain conditions, it is possible to sustainably combine bioacaricides and phytoseids. In order to obtain reliable conclusions, more comparative (predator-prey) laboratory studies are needed, as well as much more comprehensive field trials. It is also necessary to expand the range of tested bioacaricides and their formulations, as well as phytoseiid species and strains, both commercialized and native, including those important in local environments. Considering the advantages and limitations of different methods, a complementary approach that integrates laboratory and field data is needed as a sustainable solution to the evaluation of compatibility of bioacaricides and phytoseiid mites.
ER -