Tetranychoidea: Tenuipalpidae

Superorder Acariformes

  Order Trombidiformes

 Suborder Prostigmata

   Supercohort Eleutherengonides

 Cohort  Raphignathina

   Superfamily Tetranychoidea

       Family Tenuipalpidae

 

Common names: flat mites, false spider mites, bunch mites, red tea mite

 

Probability of Encounter: Very high

 

Quarantine importance: High.  About 30 genera and over 600 species of Tenuipalpidae have been described, primarily in the most economically important genera: Brevipalpus (>300 spp.) and Tenuipalpus (>200 spp.).  Tenuipalpids feed on stems, fruit, flowers, and leaves (often on the lower surface); some species form galls (e.g. Larvacarus transitans (Ewing) produces twig galls on jujube trees in India and Obdulia tamaricis Pritchard on Tamarix trees in the Mideast).  Serious damage is caused to many crops (e.g. citrus, tea, grapes, fruit trees, ornamentals, orchids, grasses, pineapple).  Additionally, several tenuipalpids are confirmed vectors of virus or virus-like diseases of plants, e.g. Brevipalpus phoenicis vectors coffee ringspot and passion fruit green spot viruses in Brazil and Costa Rica and  B. californicus vectors orchid fleck virus in many parts of the world; tenuipalpids also are associated with citrus necrosis. 

 

Diagnosis:

• Cheliceral bases adnate, fused mesally into a stylophore (sometimes withdrawn into the body); chelicerae with fixed digit reduced and movable digit whiplike.

• Palptibial claw complex absent; palpal segmentation often reduced (5-1 free segments).

• Body often flattened, with or without well developed plates.

• Adults with 3 or 4 pairs of legs; tarsal claws usually with tenent hairs on both claws and empodium.

• 2 pairs of eyes usually present, some species blind.

• Naso absent; 3-4 pairs of prodorsal setae present; trichobothria absent.

• Peritremes, when present, typically chambered structures on the dorso-lateral surface of the prodorsum 

• Genital papillae absent; males with an intromittent aedeagus.

Similar taxa.  Other members of the Tetranychoidea are the mites most likely to be confused with Tenuipalpidae.  Although these mites all share the distinctive tetranychoid mouthparts, tenuipalpids are the only tetranychoids that consistently lack a palptibial claw complex (except for one known species of Linotetranidae).  Also, many tenuipalpids have highly reduced palps.  Several tenuipalpid lineages appear to have convergently suppressed leg IV in the adult and resemble larval mites, e.g.  Larvacarus transitans (Ewing) on jujube in India, Raoiellana allium Baker and Tuttle on Allium bulbs from Turkey, species of Phytoptipalpus on Acacia and Albizzia in Africa and India, and an undescribed genus in Australia that forms galls on the leaves of shrubby composites.

 

Ecology & Distribution.  As with all Tetranychoidea, all known species of Tenuipalpidae are obligate parasites on higher plants.

 

References

Bajwa WI, Krantz GW & Kogan M.  2001.  Discovery of Cenopalpus pulcher (C.& F.)

            (Acari: Tenuipalpidae) in the New World.  Proc. Entomol. Soc. Wash. 103: 754-756.

 Baker EW.  1979.  A note on paedogenesis in Brevipalpus sp. (Acari: Tenuipalpidae), the first such record for a mite.  Internat. J. Acarol. 5: 355-356.

 Baker EW & Tuttle DM. 1972.  New species and further notes on the Tetranychoidea mostly from the southwestern United States (Acarina: Tetranychidae and Tenuipalpidae).  Smithsonian Contr. Zool. 116: 37 pp.

Baker EW & Tuttle DM. 1975.  A new genus of Tenuipalpidae (Acarina) from India. USDA Coop. Econ. Insect Rept. 25(22): 453-455. .

 Baker EW & Tuttle DM. 1987.  The false spider mites of Mexico (Tenuipalpidae: Acari).  U.S. Dept. Agr. Tech. Bull. No. 1706: 237 pp.

 Baker EW & Pritchard AE.  1960.  The tetranychoid mites of Africa.  Hilgardia 29(11): 455-574.

Chagas CM, EW Kitajima & JCV Rodrigues 2003.  Coffee ringspot virus vectored by Brevipalpus phoenicis (Acari: Tenuipalpidae) in coffee.  Exp. Appl. Acarol. 30: 203-213. 

Childers CC, JV French & JCV Rodrigues  2003a.  Brevipalpus californicus, B. obovatus, B. phoenicis, and B. lewisi (Acari: Tenuipalpidae): a review of their biology, feeding injury and economic importance.  Exp. Appl. Acarol. 30: 5-28.

 Childers CC, JCV Rodrigues & WC Welbourn 2003b.  Host plants of Brevipalpus californicus, B. obovatus, and B. phoenicis (Acari: Tenuipalpidae).  Exp. Appl. Acarol. 30: 29-105.

 Collyer E. 1973a.  A new species of the genus Dolichotetranychus (Acari:Tenuipalpidae) from New Zealand.  N. Z. J. Sci. 16: 747-749.

 Collyer E. 1973b.  New species of the genus Tenuipalpus (Acari:Tenuipalpidae) from New Zealand, with a key to the world fauna.  N. Z. J. Sci. 16: 915-955.

Evans GA, Cromroy HL & Ochoa R. 1993. The Tenuipalpidae of Honduras (Tenuipalpidae: Acari). Florida Entomologist 76: 126–155.

Jeppson LR, Keifer HH, & Baker EW.  1975.   Mites Injurious to Economic Plants.  Univ. Calif. Press, Berkeley.

Meyer MKPS. 1979. The Tenuipalpidae (Acari) of Africa with keys to the world fauna. Entomology Memoir Department of Agriculture Technical Services Republic of South Africa 50: 1–135.

Ochoa R, H Aguilar & C Vargas 1994. Phytophagous Mites of Central America: An Illustrated Guide  CATIE, Turrialba, Costa Rica.

Weeks AR, F Marec & JAJ Breeuwer  2001.  A mite species that consists entirely of haploid females.  Science 292: 2479-2482.

Welbourn WC, R Ochoa, EC Kane & EF Erbe  2003.  Morphological observations on Brevipalpus phoenicis (Acari: Tenuipalpidae) including comparisons with B. californicus and B. obovatus.  Exp. Appl. Acarol. 30: 107-133.