ECOLOGICAL AND BIOLOGICAL STUDIES ON SOME MITES OF STONE FRUIT TREES

Abstract

The present study aimed to throw light on the incidence of mites inhabiting some fruit trees, which they are plum, peach and apricot trees in some different localities of Lower Egypt. In addition, the population dynamics of phytophagous mites and their predator mites on Hollywood and Santarosa plum varieties, Metghamr peach variety and Amaar apricot variety trees at Benha district, Qalubia Governorate during two successive years from January 1999 to December 2000. Also, the effect Hollywood and Santarosa plum leaves on the biology of Tetranychus urticae Koch in Summer and Winter months, and biology of Cenopalpus pulcher (C.&F.) on Amaar apricot variety leaves in Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter months under laboratory conditions, were conducted. The results improved the following: - I. Incidence studies showed that sixteen species of mites belonging to fifteen genera and twelve families were collected from different habitats of plum, peach and apricot varieties trees at different localities of some Governorates in Lower Egypt. These are classified into: A. The phytophagous mites inhabiting five species belonging to

four genera and three families as the following:

• Family Tetranychidae Donnadieu: (Tetranychus urticae

Koch and Eutetranychus orienta/is (Klein)).

• Family Tenuipalpidae Berlese: (Cenopalpus pulcher

(C.&F.) and Cenopalpus lanceolatisetae (Attiah)).

• Family Eriophyidae Nalepa: (Aculus cornutus (Banks)).

B. The predacious mites included six species belonging six

genera and five families as the following: