Amblyseius andersoni (Chant)

NovljanK, Monica, K, Tanja Bohinc, KreiterK, Serge, K, Ismail Döker & TrdanK, Stanislav, 2023, The indigenous species of predatory mites (Acari: Phytoseiidae) as biological control agents of plant pests in Slovenia, Acarologia 63 (4), pp. 1048-1061 : 1049-1050

Amblyseius andersoni (Chant)

Amblyseius andersoni ( Figure 1 ) was first described by Chant in 1957 based on individuals collected from prune in Rosedale, British Columbia, Canada. Natural populations A of. andersoni are currently known in about 30 countries and four continents including Europe ( Demite et al. 2023). It has been observed on cultivated plants in orchards (apple, peach, pear, and citrus) and vineyards, particularly in humid areas ( Chant and Hansell 1971 ; Papadoulis and Emmanouel 1991 ; IvancichGambaro 1994; Papaioannou-Souliotis et al. 1994 ; Nicotina 1996 ;

Duso and Pasini 2003 ; Ragusa 2006). It has been reared on a commercial scale since 1995 and utilized to control several mite species such as the two-spotted spider mite Tetranychus urticae Koch , the apple rust mite Aculus schlechtendali (Nalepa) , the European red mite Panonychus ulmi (Koch) , the western flower thrips Frankliniella occidentalis (Pergande) and the tomato russet mite Aculops lycopersici (Massee) ( Knapp et al. 2018) .

This species was the second most common phytoseiid mite after Typhlodromus pyri during surveys conducted between 1997-2003 in the Podravje and Prekmurje regions in Slovenia, ( Miklavc and Milevoj 2007). In the following years, it was found in some regions, such as the Ljubljana basin area in 2012 and Primorska (Sermin) in 2017. By 2018, it was collected from a series of host plants such as grape ( Vitis vinifera L.), sour cherry ( Prunus cerasus L.),

walnut [ Juglans regia (L.)], apple ( Malus domestica Borkh. ), linden ( Tillia cordata Mill. ),

oak ( Quercus robur L.) in many places including Straža, Ravni, Arnovo Selo, Pacerag, Izola,

Pesnica, Bukovica, and Ljubljana ( Bohinc et al. 2019 ; Kreiter et al. 2020).

According to the classification system proposed by McMurtry et al. (2013), A. andersoni is a type IIIb generalist predator living on glabrous leaves. It can feed and reproduce on a wide range of food sources, including plant-feeding mites belonging to Eriophyidae , Tarsonemidae ,

Tetranychidae , and Tenuipalpidae families, as well as on thrips, whiteflies, and nematodes

( Nguyen et al. 2015). In addition, in the absence of its preliminary prey, A. andersoni feeds and reproduces on the pollen of Typha latifolia L. and the mycelium of grape downy mildew

(GDM) Plasmopara viticola (Berk & Kurt) Berlese & de Toni ( Lorenzon et al. 2012) . It can also utilize plant exudates and honeydew as survival food in the absence of its preliminary prey ( McMurtry and Croft 1997). Therefore, contrary to the many other specialized phytoseiid mites to their prey, A. andersoni may still be abundant in natural and agricultural ecosystems without any additional support or release.

In addition, Szabo and Penzes (2013) found that high numbers A of. andersoni mites were overwintering in the ground litter in a Hungarian apple orchard. After transferring the ground litter to a new young orchard, the orchard became rapidly infested with A. andersoni . The population count of leaf samples showed that the species became the dominant phytoseiid mite in the orchard, in one growing season only. The case indicated that the ground litter acted as a perfect source and shelter for A. andersoni . In the wild, this species also found a reservoir and hibernation site at the wild red champion Selene dioica (L.) Clairv. plant, which has hairy leaves and produces a sufficient supply of nectar and pollen ( Helyer et al. 2014). Because A. andersoni shows a wide range of tolerance to temperature and could be still active at lower temperatures,

it can be considered a key predator to be used in the biological control of aforementioned pests at the early stages of infestations when temperatures are lower ( Li et al., 2019). Furthermore,

previous studies also reported that the wild populations of A. andersoni showed a remarkable level of tolerance to a wide range of pesticides such as bifenazete, indoxacarb, pymetrozine,

tebufenozide in the State of Washington ( James 2002) and in Northeastern Italy ( Pozzebon et al. 2015). Therefore, due to the reasons explained above, A. andersoni could be considered one of the most suitable BCAs for IPM programs.

Figures

Figure 1 Adult female ofAmblyseius andersoni(photo: Institut Agro Montpellier).