The Identity and Distribution of Species of Phytoseius Ribaga (Acarina: Phytoseiidae) in Canada,

Abstract

Mites of the genus Phytoseius Ribaga largely inhabit plants and are at least partly predacious, feeding on tetranychid, eriophyid, and other mites. They probably also feed on pollen, honeydew, and plant juices, as do other phytoseiids that have been studied (Chant 1959; Dosse 1961; McMurty and Scriven 1964). They are not usually found in soil or humus but occur on many kinds of low growing plants as well as coniferous and deciduous trees. They have been collected on all continents and from the arctic to the tropics.

The Determination of Setal Homologies and Setal Patterns on the Dorsal Shield in the Family Phytoseiidae (Acarina: Mesostigmata)

“…Probable setal homologies were determined by examining and comparing the ontogenetic relationships of both the Phytoseiidae and the Ascidae. The immature stages of the genera Amblyseius Berlese, Typhlodromus, and Phytoseius Ribaga in the family Phytoseiidae were studied by Chant (1958) and the immature stages of the Ascidae were described by Lindquist and Evans (1965).…”

“…The problem of determining setal homologies on the dorsal shield of the Phytoseiidae was approached first by considering the ontogenetic relationships in both the Phytoseiidae (Chant 1958) and the Ascidae (Lindquist and Evans 1965). Secondly, the shape and size of the dorsal shield of exemplars from seven genera of Phytoseiidae were standardized, thereby enabling a more accurate comparison of the setal positions on the shield.…”

Survey of phytoseiid mites (Acari: Phytoseiidae) in orchards and surrounding vegetation of northwestern Europe, especially in the Netherlands. Keys, descriptions and figures

“…Discussion: From literature, it appears that Phytoseius macropilis is a rather variable species. Characters, given by some authors as distinctive, show considerable variation (Nesbitt, 1951;Chant, 1958;Chant, 1965;Chant and Athias-Henriot, 1960;Karg, 1971), particularly the length and thickness of setae s4 and s6, the shape of the spermatheca, the number of pre-anal setae present on the ventrianal shield and the shape of the macroseta on tibia leg IV. Examination of specimens of this species also revealed a considerable variation.…”

“…Probably this is the reason why descriptions of the spermathecae in literature are so variable (see for example Chant and Athias-Henriot (1960), Fig. 20;Chant (1965), Fig. 8; Dosse (1958a), Fig.…”

“…25b), with 3-5 pairs of setae (including para-anals) .. ............................................ Paraseiulus Muma, 1961 Z3 and z6 never present on dorsal shield; Z1 absent; ventrianal shield pentagonal (Fig. 29) Genus Phytoseius Ribaga, 1902 Phytoseius macropilis (Banks, 1909) Sejus macropilis Banks, 1909 Phytoseius spoofi (Oudemans, 1915a), Nesbitt, 1951 Phytoseius macropilis (Banks), Chant, 1958;Chant 1959;Chant, 1965;Dosse, 1958a;Chant and Athias-Henriot, 1960;Karg, 1971;Karg, 1982 Typhlodromus (Phytoseius) macropilis (Banks), Westerboer and Bernhard, 1963 Female Length of idiosoma: 304-336 t~m. Dorsum: dorsal shield slender, well sclerotized, heavily sculptured; with 14 pairs of dorsal setae and sublateral setae r3 on dorsal shield, of which 8 pairs at the lateral margins of the shield (i3, z2, z3, z4, r3, s4 and s6 on pro-and Zs on postscutum); Iz absent.…”