Kopačka, M.; Zemek, R. Species Composition and Seasonal Abundance of Predatory Mites (Acari: Phytoseiidae) Inhabiting Aesculus hippocastanum (Sapindaceae). Forests2023, 14, 942.
Kopačka, M.; Zemek, R. Species Composition and Seasonal Abundance of Predatory Mites (Acari: Phytoseiidae) Inhabiting Aesculus hippocastanum (Sapindaceae). Forests 2023, 14, 942.
Kopačka, M.; Zemek, R. Species Composition and Seasonal Abundance of Predatory Mites (Acari: Phytoseiidae) Inhabiting Aesculus hippocastanum (Sapindaceae). Forests2023, 14, 942.
Kopačka, M.; Zemek, R. Species Composition and Seasonal Abundance of Predatory Mites (Acari: Phytoseiidae) Inhabiting Aesculus hippocastanum (Sapindaceae). Forests 2023, 14, 942.
Abstract
Phytoseiidae inhabit a wide range of herbs, shrubs and trees. Aesculus hippocastanum is an important ornamental tree in Europe and is likely reservoir of these mites. We therefore assessed the species composition and the spatial and seasonal variability in the abundance of Phytoseiidae in city parks in South Bohemia, Czech Republic. Leaf samples were randomly collected from horse chestnut tree branches at eight sites, five times during the vegetation season in 2013. The mites were collected by washing technique and mounted on slides for identification. In total, 13,903 specimens of phytoseiid mites were found, and eight species were identified: Amblyseius andersoni, Euseius finlandicus, Kampimodromus aberrans, Neoseiulella tiliarum, Phytoseilus macropilis, Paraseiulus talbii, Paraseiulus triporus and Typhlodromus (Typhlodromus) pyri. Paraseiulus talbii and P. macropilis were recorded on the leaves of horse chestnut trees for the first time in the Czech Republic in this study. The predominant species was E. finlandicus (96.25%). The number of mites per compound leaf was, on average, 2.53, 10.40, 23.54, 11.59 and 9.27 on the sampling dates in each month between May and September, respectively. The mite density was significantly affected by the sampling site and date.
Keywords
horse chestnut tree; diversity; population dynamics; mite density; city parks
Subject
Biology and Life Sciences, Insect Science
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
