Biological studies of the Oligonychus litchi (Trombidiformes:Tetranychidae) on four commercial litchi cultivars

Authors

  • Qiong Yao Plant Protection Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510640, China
  • Linfa Quan Plant Protection Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510640, People’s Republic of China;
  • Haiming Xu Plant Protection Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510640, People’s Republic of China;
  • Tao Jia Plant Protection Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510640, People’s Republic of China;
  • Wenjing Li Plant Protection Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510640, People’s Republic of China;
  • Bingxu Chen Plant Protection Research Institute, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510640, People’s Republic of China;

Abstract

Litchi is one of the most important pillars of the fruit industry in Southeast Asia and mainland China. The litchi spider mite, Oligonychus litchi Lo & Ho (Prostigmata: Tetranychidae), is a major pest of litchi. To determine the influence of different litchi cultivars on the life cycle, fecundity, and longevity of O. litchii, life tables of O. litchii on 4 popular commercial litchi cultivars in China (‘Baili,’‘Fezixiao,’‘Sanyuehong,’ and‘Nuomici’) were constructed under laboratory conditions at 25 ± 1 °C, 65 to 80% RH, and photoperiod of 14:10 h (L:D). Life stages of O. litchii consist of egg, larva, protonymph, deutonymph, and adult, with distinct body sizes and colors. The life table parameters were significantly influenced by litchi cultivars. Our results showed that the developmental time of immature O. litchii was significantly longer on Baili than on the other 3 litchi cultivars. The immature survival rates of O. litchii varied from 21.74% to 68.42%. Oligonychus litchii laid significantly more eggs on Nuomici (64.84 eggs per female) than on other cultivars. The population doubling time of O. litchii ranged from 4.56 to 22.42 d, and a significant varietal effect was seen. The mites feeding on Nuomici showed the lowest intrinsic rate of natural increase per d (rm = 0.14 female per female per d). In addition, the net reproductive rate (R0) and finite rate of increase (λ) of O. litchii had the highest value on Nuomici (22.86 female per female per generation, and 1.16 female per female per d, respectively). The comparison of rm, R0, and immature survival rate of O. litchi on host plants revealed that Nuomici is the most suitable cultivar, suggesting that Nuomici is more susceptible to the litchi spider mite than the other 3 litchi cultivars.

 

Resumen

El lichi es uno de los pilares más importantes de la industria frutícola en el sudeste asiático y en la China continental. La arañita de lichi, Oligonychus litchii Lo & Ho (Prostigmata: Tetranychidae), es una plaga importante del lichi. Para determinar la influencia de diferentes cultivares de lichi sobre el ciclo de vida, la fecundidad y la longevidad de O. litchii, se construyeron tablas de vida de O. litchii en 4 cultivares de lichi comercial populares en China (‘Baili,’‘Fezixiao,’‘Sanyuehong,’ y ‘Nuomici’) en condiciones de laboratorio a 25 ± 1 °C, 65 a 80% de HR, y un fotoperíodo de 14:10 h (L:D). Los estadios de vida de O. litchii consisten en huevo, larva, protoninfa, deutoninfa, y adulto, con distintos tamaños de cuerpo y colores. Los parámetros de la tabla de vida fueron significativamente influenciados por cultivares de lichi. Nuestros resultados mostraron que el tiempo de desarrollo de los inmaduros de O. litchii fue significativo para más tiempo sobre Baili que en los otros 3 cultivares de lichi. Las tasas de sobrevivencia de los inmaduros de O. litchii variaron de 21,74% a 68,42%. Oligonychus litchii puso significativamente más huevos sobre Nuomici (64.84 huevos por hembra) que en otros cultivares. El tiempo de duplicación de la población de O. litchii varió de 4.56 a 22.42 d, y se observó un efecto varietal significativo. Los ácaros que se alimentaron de Nuomici mostraron la tasa intrínseca más baja de aumento natural pordía (rm = 0.14 hembra por hembra por d). Además, la tasa reproductiva neta (R0) y la tasa de aumento finita (λ) de O. litchii tuvieron el valor más alto en Nuomici (22.86 hembras por hembra por generación y 1.16 hembras por hembra por d, respectivamente). La comparación de los rm, R0, y la tasa de sobrevivencia de los inmaduros de O. litchii en las plantas hospederas reveló que Nuomici es el cultivar más adecuado, lo que sugiere que Nuomici es más susceptible a la arañita de lichi que los otros 3 cultivares de lichi.

Key Words: spider mite; behavior; development; fecundity; life table

View this article in BioOne https://doi.org/10.1653/024.102.0220

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Published

2019-07-31

Issue

Vol. 102, No. 2 (June 2019)

Section

Research Papers

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