فهرست نشریات علمی دسترسی آزاد ایران

Given the potential importance of the predatory mite Phytoseius corniger Wainstein, 1959 (Acari: Phytoseiidae) as a native species collected from an apple orchard, the functional response and biological parameters of the female predatory mite fed on biological stages larva, pupa and adult of the spider mite Tetranychus  urticae Koch (Acari: Tetranychidae) were tested under laboratory conditions at 25 ± 1 °C, 55 ± 5 RH, and 16:8 photoperiod. The type II functional response were determined for the predatory mite at all three different life stages of its prey. The predator attack rate (a) was estimated for larval stages (0.039/h), nymphs (0.037/h), and adult prey (0.026/h). Also, the handling time (Th) for larva, nymph and adult of prey was estimated to be 0.736 h, 0.778 h and 0.808 h, respectively. The shortest duration of the immature stage (6.08 ± 0.16) and highest daily oviposition rate (0.47 ± 0.02 egg per day) were estimated when P. corniger fed on adult stage of prey. On the other hand, the highest daily predation rate (5.43 ± 0.19 prey per day) was observed when it fed on larval stage of prey. According to the results of the present study, the predatory mite P. corniger is able to effectively reduce the population of the two-spotted mite, especially at lower densities and pre-adult stages. Future studies on other similar species as well as evaluation of the efficiency of these predatory species under field conditions, seem necessary.