Neoseiulus umbraticus (Chant)

Kreiter, Serge, Amiri, Karima, Douin, Martial, Bohinc, Tanja, Trdan, Stanislav & Tixier, Marie-Stéphane, 2020, Phytoseiid mites of Slovenia (Acari: Mesostigmata): new records and first description of the male ofAmblyseius microorientalis, Acarologia 60 (2), pp. 203-242 : 207-208

Neoseiulus umbraticus (Chant)

Typhlodromus umbraticus Chant 1956: 26 .

Typhlodromus (Typhlodromus) umbraticus, Beglyarov 1958: 107 .

Amblyseius umbraticus, Athias-Henriot 1959: 138 .

Typhlodromus (Amblyseius) umbraticus, Chant 1959: 75 .

Amblyseius (Typhlodromopsis) umbraticus, Muma 1961: 287 .

Amblyseius (Amblyseius) umbraticus, Wainstein & Vartapetov 1973: 103 .

Amblyseius (Neoseiulus) umbraticus, Karg 1991: 23 .

Neoseiulus umbraticus, Moraes et al. 1986: 99 ; 2004: 149; Chant & McMurtry 2003a: 23; 2007: 31.

Just like the previous species and for same reasons, this species belongs to the cucumeris species group of the genus Neoseiulus and to the cucumeris species subgroup ( Chant and McMurtry 2003a).

Very few studies exist on its biology. Knisley and Swift (1971) and Kazak et al. (2002) showed its ability to develop feeding on T. urticae . Sengonca & Dresher (2001) studied the ability of this species to develop feeding on Thrips tabaci Lindeman and concluded that this food alters its biological parameters in comparison to T. urticae . N. umbraticus seems able to develop and reproduce also on Panonychus ulmi (Koch) , Calvolia lordi (Nesbitt) , Aculus schlechtendali (Nalepa) , adults of Quadraspidiotus perniciosus (Comstock) , and on apple and cherry pollens. Adults of Agistemus fleschneri Summers and winter eggs of P. ulmi were not fed upon.

This is the first report of that species from Slovenia.

World distribution: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Azores, Belarus, Caucasus Region, Denmark, England, France, Georgia, Germany, Hungary, Iran, Italy, Jamaica, Latvia, Mexico, Moldovia, Montenegro, Morocco, Norway, Poland, Russia, Slovakia, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, USA.

Specimens examined: 14 ♀♀, 7 ♂♂ and 4 immatures in total. Škofljica, Gumnišče 15 (aasl 305 m, 45°58’15”N, 14°34’17”E), 1 ♀ on Carpinus betulus L. ( Betulaceae ), 18/ VI /2019; Kranj (aasl 434 m, 46°16’6”N, 14°20’26”E), 12 ♀♀, 7 ♂♂ and 4 immatures on Rubus fruticosus L. ( Rosaceae ), 21/VI/2019; Ljubljana, Hotel Katrca (aasl 307 m, 46°3’19”N, 14°20’26”E), 1 ♀ on Tilia platyphyllos Scopoli (Malvaceae) , 22/VI/2019.

Remarks: The description and measurements of the adult females collected agree with those provided by Chant et al. (1982) and by Ferragut et al. (2010) for specimens from Spain.