Biological and demographic parameters of Tegolophus brunneus (Acari: Eriophyidae) in citrus

Occurrence of Tegolophus brunneus and Phyllocoptruta oleivora (Acari: Eriophyidae) on the main citrus belt of Brazil and the differential toxicity of the acaricides to these species

Many mites of the family Eriophyidae are important pests worldwide. In citrus crops, the eriophyid Phyllocoptruta oleivora stands out for the economic losses caused. The pest's injuries cause the darkening of leaves, twigs, and fruits, making them unfit for the fresh fruit market and affecting plant productivity. Another species that causes similar symptoms was described in Brazil recently, the brown citrus rust mite, Tegolophus brunneus. Although studies have not been performed with this species, growers and technicians have attributed the rise in rust damages in Brazil to T. brunneus, affirming that this mite is more aggressive and resistant to acaricides than P. oleivora. In this study, the distribution of T. brunneus in the main Brazilian citrus belt and the differential toxicity of the acaricides sulfur and abamectin were evaluated for both species. Infested fruits were collected from different orchards in many municipalities, covering the main citrus species and cultivars grown, aiming to show the main T. brunneus hosts. It was observed that only plants of Tahiti acid lime (Citrus latifolia) were infested by T. brunneus, whereas P. oleivora infested all citrus cultivars and species evaluated (Citrus spp.). In our study, T. brunneus and P. oleivora were never observed coinfesting the same fruit/leaf or plant. The acute toxicity test of sulfur and abamectin as acaricides showed that T. brunneus has greater tolerance to abamectin than P. oleivora. However, the acute toxicity of sulfur was similar for both species. These results showed T. brunneus specificity to infest Tahiti acid lime, causing important damage to this crop, and suggest that attention should be paid to managing this mite using abamectin.

Eriophyoid mites (Acari: Prostigmata) from Brazil: an annotated checklist

The superfamily Eriophyoidea constitute a group of phytophagous mites of particular economic and evolutionary interest due to their intimate association with host plants and their agricultural importance as harmful or beneficial organisms. Studies on the Eriophyoidea fauna in Brazil started in the early 1900s with botanical works on cecidias and were continued with researchers looking for and reporting on eriophyid mites causing damage to agricultural crops. Therefore, in this annotated checklist, we compile information from just over a century on eriophyid mites reported or described from Brazil. Its purpose is to facilitate plant protection strategies and guide future work on this important group of phytophagous mites. In addition to taxonomy, we present information on host plants and general aspects of cecidia attributed to eriophyoid mites but without genus/species identification. Compilation was based on: i) literature, including papers, books, theses and congress/symposium publications; ii) specimens deposited in mite collections in Brazil. On each species we present: i) suprageneric/generic classification, synonyms and previous genus/era assignments, including references on original and/or additional descriptions; ii) type host plant and other host(s) plant(s) found in the country; iii) host relationships and remarks on symptoms; iv) localities of occurrences at States/Federal District and municipal levels; and v) host plant status in Brazil as well as biomes where they occur or are cultivated. A total of 234 valid eriophyoid mite species are recorded: 196 Eriophyidae, 20 Diptilomiopidae and 18 Phytoptidae, distributed in 92 genera. Host plants comprised 233 species, belonging to 141 genera and 56 plant families. Four new reports of eriophyoid mites in Brazil are presented based on specimens deposited in reference collections. A new combination is presented for Propeaciota secundum (Flechtmann, Amrine Stasny) in the genus Khanthongella. In addition, data on observations and descriptions of 67 cecidias attributed to eriophyoid mites in five states and on 21 plant families are presented. Geographically, the distribution of species reports of eriophyoids around Brazil is highly uneven, with more than 64% of species (151 spp.) in the Southeast region, which surely reflects a lack of research elsewhere. Regarding host plant specificity, 77.7% are reported on only one host species, 88.9% on one host genus and 98.3% on one host family. Regarding host status 64.1% of species are exclusively associated with native host plants, 27% with naturalized or exotic cultivated host plants, and 6.4% from both native and naturalized or exotic host plants.