Philippine acarine biological control agents: Status, bioecology and research prospects

Abstract

The known diversity of Philippine predatory families with potentially important biological control agents is reviewed, together with their habitat plants and associated phytophagous, storage or parasitic mites. Based on almost complete taxonomic accounts of material accumulated for more than 30 yr from the country, the Phytoseiidae leads with 105 known species on 435 species of plants, and the Cunaxidae and Cheyletidae each with 54 species collected from 114 and 80 plants, respectively. Based on their broad habitat distribution, several phytoseiids appear to be important, namely, Typhlodromus contiguus Chant, Amblyseius phillipsi Schicha, A. largoensis (Muma), A. ovalis (Evans), A. asiaticus (Evans), A. tamatavensis Blommers, A. longispinosus (Evans), and Paraphytoseius multidentatus Swirski and Shechter. Local information on the biology and ecology of phytoseiids is limited to A. longispinosus, an important predator of the spider mite, Tetranychus kanzawai Kishida, on several crops, especially cassava. Notes are given on the host range, feeding habits and consumption rate of Cheyletus malaccensis Oudemans, which commonly inhabits stored products of plant and animal origin, as well as house dust and nests or bodies of birds. Recent outbreaks of phytophagous mites on crops in the Cordilleras in northern Philippines and sporadic reports of similar problems in plantations in Mindanao point to the urgent need and prospects for biological control research in the Philippines. Aside from augmentative releases of mass-reared predators, it is recommended that future research focus on community ecology of arboreal and litter-inhabiting mites as bases for crop management strategies that protect and enhance populations of natural enemies through habitat manipulation.

Source or Periodical Title

Philippine Agricultural Scientist

ISSN

317454

Page

137-154

Document Type

Article

Subject

Acari, Amblyseius longispinosus, Biological control, Cheyletus malaccensis, Phytoseiidae, Predatory mites

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