Persian Journal of Acarology
Volume:11 Issue: 4, Autumn 2022

Two new species of Pavania (Acari: Heterostigmata: Dolichocybidae) phoretic on dung beetles (Coleoptera: Scara-baeidae), P. neoafricana sp. nov. has been collected on Heliocopris neptunus in Tanzania, and P. madagascariensis sp. nov. has been collected on Helictipleurus quadripunctatus in Madagascar are described. The updated key to species of the genus Pavania is provided. The family Dolichocybidae is reported from Madagascar for the first time.

The fauna of Iranian stored products’ mites (Arachnida: Acari) is summarized based on data from published books and papers. A total of 144 species of the Acari belonging to 90 genera, 45 families, 27 superfamilies, three suborders, three orders and two superorders have been recorded in Iran. Species-richest families are Acaridae (17 species, 11.80%), Cheyletidae (16 species, 11.11%) followed by Laelapidae (12 species, 8.33%), Ameroseiidae (seven species, 4.86%), Bdellidae (six species, 4.16%), and each of the families Tydeidae, Cunaxidae and Ascidae (five species, 3.47%), Stigmaeidae, Erythraeidae, Melicharidae, Glycyphagidae and Oppiidae (four species, 2.77%), Trematuridae, Raphignathidae, Blattisociidae, Macrochelidae (three species, 2.08%), Dinychidae, Tarsonemidae, Caligonellidae, Pyemotidae, Acarophenacidae, Phytoseiidae, Histiostomatidae, Carpoglyphidae, Ereynetidae, Suida-siidae and Oribatulidae (each two species, 1.38%) and seventeen families have one species as follows: Achipteriidae, Euphthiracaridae, Scheloribatidae, Cosmochthoniidae, Haplochthoniidae, Tectocepheidae, Suctobelbidae, Pyroglyph-idae, Chortoglyphidae, Smarididae, Eupodidae, Parholaspidae, Digamasellidae, Ologamasidae, Rhodacaridae, Tetra-nychidae, and Oplitidae.

Mites in seaweeds from two distant sites of the Dagestan State Nature Reserve, namely from the Kizlyar Bay and Samoor Forest, were studied. Total of 31 species of mesostigmatic mites (Acari: Mesostigmata) and 31 species of oribatid mites (Acari: Oribatida) were collected and identified. The other mites (Astigmata, Prostigmata, and Endeostigmata) belong to 19 families. One species of gamasid mites [Gamasellodes vulgatior (Athias-Henriot, 1961)] and two species of oribatids [Austrophthiracarus cf. duplex (Mahunka & Mahunka-Papp, 2010); Xenillus moyae Pérez-Íñigo & Peña, 1994] are recorded from Russia for the first time. Among 62 identified species, 28 (including the majority of Mesostigmata) were not previously recorded in Dagestan. The faunistic similarity of species lists from two sites was only 13.1% (Jaccard's coefficient). The input of broadly hydrophilic mite species (15% of the total list) is noticeable. However, no characteristic halophilic (littoral) species were found. Most likely, this is due to the absence of marine macrophytes (and their emissions) in studied soft-ground coastal areas. It is during their decay that a specialized saprophilic complex of invertebrates is commonly formed.

We redescribed and illustrated Charletonia damavandica on the basis of examination of its type and new materials which were collected ectoparasitic on Calliptamus italicus (Insecta: Orthoptera: Acrididae) as hosts from Shahrood city, Semnan province, Iran as a new host record.

Larvae of Charletonia nazeleae Karimi Iravanlou, Kamali & Talebi were previously collected from Karaj, Alborz province, Iran, parasitizing two different acridid grasshopper species. Here, we present new morphological and meristic data based on collecting new mite specimens during surveys to Zagros Mountains, Fars province, Iran and a correction of the previous description by reconsidering the type specimen and augmenting the original data. Also, two new hosts for this species are identified.

Mites are the allergens most implicated in the etiology of allergic respiratory diseases. They are frequent in humid and warm areas and are usually found in household dust. The objective of this work is to report the presence of a new species of domestic mite in Cuba found in the homes of the country's capital. The samples, consisting of mattress dust, were taken in the municipalities of Plaza and Habana del Este. The species Glycycometus malaysiensis (Fain & Nadchatram) was identified from a female and a nymph. The diagnostic characters and their allergenic importance are discussed.

The nature of spider mite counterattack and defensive behavior and their effects on predatory mites have only been investigated in social species. Here, we have examined the defensive success of Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acari: Tetranychidae) male individuals in the presence of Phytoseiulus persimilis Athias-Henriot (Acari: Phytoseiidae) juveniles. We recorded the number of T. urticae eggs eaten (killed) within three days along with monitoring the predator (dead/alive) status. The defensive behavior of T. urticae male was considered as success when the predator had consumed less than 50% of the prey eggs and was killed at the end of the experimental period. Our main hypothesis was that introducing an additional male would increase the defensive success rate. Results showed that the success rate was significantly higher in the patches with two T. urticae male individuals compared to one. No significant difference were observed among the egg-eating (killing) rate within the three consecutive days of experiment in patches with one male, while in the treatments with an additional male, the egg killing rate of the third day was significantly higher than that on the first day. We also hypothesized that male T. urticae with significant higher rate of defensive success should be morphologically different in comparison with the defeated ones. We found no significant differences in the length of chelicera, first leg and body (length and width) between the successful versus defeated males. We concluded that T. urticae can attack the predator, but the weapon by which the success happens remained unclear.

A field experiment was conducted to evaluate the effect of silicon (Si) in the forms of oligomeric silicic acid (OSAB®) and potassium silicate (Silica K®) in inducing the resistance of eggplant Solanum melongena against Tetranychus urticae (Acari: Tetranychidae) infestation. Both forms were applied as a foliar spray at concentrations of 2 mL L−1 and 4 mL L−1, respectively, with three sprays with an interval of 20 days ‎between the three consecutive applications Tetranychus urticae adult, nymph, and egg counts were recorded 10, 30 and 50 days after spraying (DAS). The effect of the two tested forms on S. melongena defense response was assessed by measuring the activity of enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants. Our results showed that both Si forms at a high concentration (4 mL L−1) significantly decreased the T. urticae stage numbers in S. melongena-treated plants. In addition, the Si-treated plants with the lowest T. urticae infestation were associated with increased Si leaf content, total phenol, and protein contents, as well as increased activity of the antioxidant enzymes compared to the control group. Si leaf content was negatively correlated with the T. urticae population density in S. melongena-treated plants with both tested treatments. In addition, a positive correlation was found between the Si leaf content and the activity of the antioxidant enzymes, total phenol, and protein contents. Applying both Si forms resulted in a positive effect in reducing the T. urticae infestation and its damage to S. melongena. Therefore, Si could be used as a foliar treatment to induce resistance in S. melongena plants, making it a potentially valuable pest management tool.

Stress is hypothesized to be one of the primary abiotic factors that influence the structuring of food webs. Drought and salinity stresses are the most serious induced problems of agriculture due to climatic changes. Considering the global warming and drying of Urmia salt lake in northwestern Iran which can result in salinization of agricultural lands nearby, the focus of this study is to examine the effects of the two above-mentioned stresses on a host plant (Medicago sativa L.) and its pest (Tetranychus urticae Koch) performance. Two levels of water deficit (kept dry for 5 and 10 days and received 50% and 25% of field capacity respectively) and three levels of salinity (100, 200 and 300 mM NaCl) were added to alfalfa plants as stress factors and the following characteristics were measured before and after herbivore infestation: relative water, chlorophyll, carotenoid, protein, proline, malondialdehyde (MDA) and H2O2 contents of leaves and catalase (CAT), ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and guaiacol peroxidase (GPX) enzyme activities. The life table parameters of two-spotted spider mite reared on stressed plants were measured and compared with control. We found that drought and salinity stresses led to a decrease of alfalfa plant growth. Morphological and physiological changes included a decrease of relative water, chlorophyll and carotenoid contents and an increase of protein, proline, MDA and H2O2 contents and APX enzyme activity. The net reproductive rate (R0), mean generation time (T), intrinsic rate of increase (r) and finite rate of increase (λ) were significantly higher for mites grown on control host plants compared to mites grown on stressed ones and were 25.66 offspring/ individual/generation time, 16.38 d, 0.1971 day−1 and 1.2180 day−1 respectively. These parameters reduced significantly in mites grown on stressed host plants; the significant lowest values were recorded for mites grown on host plants subjected to high salinity (300 mM) and were 0.5 offspring/individual/generation time, 14.47 d, −0.0514 day−1 and 0.9502 day−1 respectively. In terms of this experiment, the water stress had a stronger influence on the morphological and physiological characteristics of alfalfa plant compared to spider mite infestation.

This study describes in detail the anatomical and histochemical aspects of the phytophagous mites-Tahiti lime pathosystem. More than 300 healthy pieces of fruit affected by these mites were collected from agricultural crops in the province of Santander-Colombia. Identification of the mites associated with the lesions observed was conducted via specialized literature and consultations with expert taxonomists of this group. The pericarps were processed according to standard protocols for embedding and sectioning in paraffin, and the sections obtained were stained with Safranin-Alcian Blue, Fast Blue B, Floroglucinol, Lacmoid, and PAS-Amido Black. Additional sections were processed in resin and stained with Toluidine Blue. For observation under scanning electron microscopy (SEM), the material was fixed and dehydrated in 2,2-dimethoxypropane, then in critical point dried and coated with gold. The surface of healthy fruit was smooth, with a bright, intense green color and stomata. The exocarp is composed of various cell layers; the outermost being the epidermal tissue, which is formed of a single layer of cells covered by a thick cuticle. The remaining layers consist of photosynthetic and reserve parenchyma with abundant starch grains. The fruit affected by the three mites showed deterioration of the exocarpal layers varying according to the severity of the attack and the species of mite responsible. In general, there were fissures and/or cracks on the surface of the fruit in addition to structures such as circular whitish spots in the case of Schizotetranychus hindustanicus. The affected tissues tested positive for polyphenols and lignin, but not for callose. The primary walls were positive for PAS-Amidoblack but no proteins or starch granules were detected. Likewise, staining with Toluidine Blue indicated the presence of primary wall components, lignin, and polyphenols. Phytophagous mite attack affects mainly the exocarpal layers. The histopathological response of the plant to the attack of these mites is similar among the three, and results in the formation of periderm, lignin deposits, and polyphenols in the affected tissues. Greater severity of tissue damage was observed in the case of attack by Polyphagotarsonemus latus.

This study was aimed to investigate the population dynamics and diversity indices of three invasive species; the two-spotted spider mite (TSSM) Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acari: Tetranychidae), the silver leaf whitefly Bemisia tabaci Genn. (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae), and the onion thrips Thrips tabaci Lindman (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) on four tested plants; Siberian (Russian) kale Brassica napus var. pabularia L., Italian (Tuscan) kale Brassica oleracea var. palmifolia L. (Brassicaceae), spearmint Mentha spicata L. and Saudi Mint Mentha longifolia L. (Lamiaceae); in addition to evaluating a proposed IPM protocol in two experimental sites (Om Saber, Beheira Governorate and Kom Oshim, Fayoum Governorate). The proposed IPM program consisted using predatory mites; Phytoseiulus persimilis Athias-Henriot, Amblyseius swirskii Athias-Henriot, and Cydnoseius negevi (Swirski & Amitai) (Acari: Phytoseiidae), a green pesticide, and an entomopathogenic compound. Samples were collected from tested plants for two seasons to calculate pest population dynamics, and diversity indices, before and after IPM treatments. The resulting data showed statistically significant fluctuation, population dynamics, abundance, distribution, and diversity indices of the three targeted pest species recorded on the four tested plants. The proposed IPM protocol resulted in a significant reduction percentage when A. swirskii was used compared to other tactics. It is discussed that abiotic and biotic factors together help in explaining why various pest species build their communities rapidly and increase their parameters that become above the Economic Injury Level (EIL). Such factors are hypothesized to affect the plant-arthropod, predator-herbivore, predator-predator, and tri-trophic interactions. The proposed protocol recommends the consideration of application timing and merging tactics together to get maximum efficiency.