Persian Journal of Acarology
Volume:3 Issue: 1, Winter 2014

Based on studies on edaphic mites of the superfamily Uropodoidea in Mazandaran Province, northern Iran, three new records of the families Uropodidae and Trematuridae were collected and identified as follows: Neodiscopoma splendida (Kramer), Uropoda (Uropoda) fumicola (Schweizer) and Trichouropoda spatulifera (Moniez). Also, a key to the known Iranian species of Uropodoidea is presented.

A new species of the genus Eustigmaeus, E. isfahaniensis sp. nov. is described and illustrated based on female and male collected from soil under lichen, Najaf Abad town, Isfahan province, Iran.

Seven species from five genera of the family Phytoseiidae were collected in northeast Iran. Typhlodromus (Anthoseius) neyshabouris (Denmark & Daneshvar, 1982) were recorded for the second time. This species with the male of Proprioseiopsis messor (Wainstein, 1960) are redescribed and illustrated. A key to the adult females of the Razavi Khorasan province of Iran is also provided. Phytoseius corniger Wainstein, 1959 had the highest abundance and distribution in this survey.

Pseudoparasitus hajiqanbari sp. nov., a new free-living species of the family Laelapidae is described based on adult females collected from forest litter in southeastern Caspian Sea, Mazandaran and Golestan Provinces, Iran. The new species can be easily distinguished from other members of the genus by a combination of characters, including presence of eight denticulate rows in deutosternal groove, edentate fixed digit of chelicerae, elongate post-stigmatic region of peritrematal shield and insertion of palp trochanter setae av1 on a protuberance. Also, a key to the known Iranian species of Pseudoparasitus Oudemans is provided.

The spatial and temporal distribution of Eotetranychus frosti (McGregor), Cenopalpus irani Dosse, and their dominant predator Typhlodromus bagdasarjani Wainstein & Arutunjan were studied in an unsprayed apple orchard in Chaghalvandi region (Lorestan Province, Iran) during 2012. The population densities of these phytophagous mites and their predator were monitored from 3th May to 4th November 2012. For this purpose, samplings were done 17 times and at each of them, mite counts were made on 60 leaves (i.e. sampling unit). The spatial distribution pattern of E. frosti, C. irani and T. bagdasarjani was determined by using Taylor’s power law method. Calculated RV (relative variation) and reliable sample size for the 25% variation from preliminary sampling for E. frosti were 16.22% and 53.86, respectively. The results demonstrated that population fluctuations of E. frosti and T. bagdasarjani passed through two peaks whereas C. irani had only one peak. The highest densities were observed on 23th August (28.68 per leaf), 11th September (28.88 per leaf) and 11th August (1.18 per leaf) for E. frosti, C. irani and T. bagdasarjani, respectively. The slopes of Taylor's power law were significantly greater than 1 indicating aggregated spatial distributions in the E. frosti and C. irani, but T. bagdasarjani had b= 1, indicating random distribution. Our findings disclosed a positive correlation between population fluctuations of the two phytophagous mites and the predator, indicating a density-dependent reaction of predator to prey densities. The relationship between meteorological parameters and the three mite populations studied showed that the effect of temperature was insignificant, whereas the effect of relative humidity was significantly negative.

The Grape Erineum Mite (GEM), Colomerus vitis (Pagenstecher) (Acari: Eriophyidae), is a serious pest of vine (Vitis vinifera L.) in western Iran. Host plant resistance has not been explored as a method for its Integrated Mite Management. In this study, GEM-vine interactions and the biochemical features potentially related to vine resistance/ sensitiveness have been investigated on Fakhri, Gazne and White Thompson seedless cultivated in field conditions in western Iran. The lowest and highest mite densities were found on leaves of White Thompson Seedless and Gazne, respectively. As expected, reduction of healthy leaf area, increase of leaf weight, shortening of shoots and erinea formation were more relevant on the most infested Gazne; White Thompson Seedless appeared to be affected by GEM infestation. The diameter of grape berries and their weight did not differ significantly between infested and control plants on all cultivars. Mite density appeared to be negatively related to the sugar content only for Gazne grape. The amount of the leaf waxes was highest in White Thompson Seedless on which the lowest mite density, the lowest percentage of erinea and largest healthy leaf areas were detected. Carbohydrate content of leaves was the lowest on the least mite-infested Thomson seedless and the highest on the most infested Gazne, while phenols decreased in Gazne after mite infestation.

The effect of host plant experience and different hunger periods on the olfactory response of Phytoseiulus persimilis was studied on rose leaves under laboratory conditions. When clean air was considered as the olfactometer fixed arm, P. persimilis showed a significant preference towards odours related to the alternative arms i.e. clean leaves, T. urticae-infested leaves, leaves occupied by Frankliniella occidentalis and leaves occupied by conspecifics regardless of starvation time and experience. When we replaced clean air by clean rose leaves, the naïve predators with 10 hours starvation and the experienced ones with both 5 and 10 hours starvation showed a significant preference (towards T. urticae-infested leaves) rather than clean leaves. When the predators were offered clean leaves vs. leaves occupied by thrips, neither naïve nor experienced P. persimilis with 5 hours starvation made a significant preference between the arms, while the ones kept starved for 10 hours preferred clean air regardless of experience. Receiving odours related to conspecifics vs. clean rose, the naïve P. persimilis females with 5 hours starvation and the naïve and experience ones kept starved for 10 hours avoided odours related to conspecifics. The five hour-starved experienced predators and the 10 hour-starved naïve and experienced ones moved towards T. urticae-infested leaves when the alternative arm was consisted of leaves occupied by thrips. Receiving odours related to T. urticae-infested leaves from one arm and odours related to leaves occupied by conspecifics, most of the predators moved towards the former arm regardless of experience and starvation time. When the predators were offered T. urticae-infested leaves vs. leaves occupied by thrips, a significant movement towards spider mites was observed both in experienced and naive treatments kept starved for 10 hours and in five hour-starved experienced ones. Irrespective of the starvation time, the predatory mite’s previous experience did not have a significant effect on the time needed by P. persimilis to pass the lateral arms of the olfactometer. Both experience and starvation affected the predator’s oviposition rate.

Determination of the host preference of predatory mites when receiving signals related to either untreated and Beauveria bassiana-treated Tetranychus urticae (Acari: Tetranychidae) is important in predicting the predatory mite’s reaction when encountering pathogens due to their coincident presence in greenhouses and fields. Here, we have studied the preference of female predatory mite, Phytoseiulus persimilis Athias-Henriot (Acari: Phytoseiidae) when choosing between untreated and B. bassiana-treated T. urticae (72 hours after treatment of spider mite by fungus) on leaves. This investigation showed a highly significant preference of P. persimilis towards untreated T. urticae (P

The mite species Archidispus esfarayenicus Hajiqanbar & Khaustov sp. nov. (Acari: Heterostigmatina: Scutacaridae) detached from under elytra of a carabid beetle, Elaphropus (Tachyura) diabrachys (Kolenati, 1845) (Coleoptera: Carabidae), is described and illustrated from Iran. The new species is distinguishable from congeners by the characteristically modified setae 1a, dilated thoroughly with an apical thorn. This is the first record of the genus Archidispus from Iran.