Aceria olea ( Nalepa 1900 )

Chatti, A., Kreiter, S., Lebdi-Grissa, K. & Ksantini, M., 2017, Phytophagous and predatory mites on olive trees in Tunisia. Catalogue, description of one new species and key for identification (Acari, Eriophyidae, Tetranychidae, Tenuipalpidae and Phytoseiidae), Acarologia 57 (2), pp. 233-254 : 236

Aceria olea ( Nalepa 1900)

Eriophyes oleae Nalepa, 1900: 154 .

Phytoptus oleae (Nalepa), 1905: 139 -140.

Aceria oleae (Nalepa) Hatzinikolis, 1986: 49-54 .

Common name — olive bud mite.

Distribution — Aceria oleae is recorded from Algeria, Egypt, Greece, Libya, Marocco, Span, Iran Italy, Portugal, U.S. A and South Africa ( Vacante 2016).

Material examined — Sfax: Aouled Msallem (34°58’21.97"N, 10°47’20.72"E), April 2008, 59 ♀♀ and 8 immatures ; Hageb (34°42’16.50"N, 10°39’18.97"E), April 2008, 82 ♀♀ and 23 ♂♂ ; Taous (34°56’02.88"N, 10°36’52.77"E), April 2008, 41 ♀♀ and 12 ♂♂ ; Ltayfa (34°44’58.23"N, 10°11’39.67"E), April 2008, 67 ♀♀ and 33 ♂♂ ; Jbenyana (35°03’14.28"N, 10°55’46.63"E), April 2011, 29 ♀♀ and 23 immatures . Karkennah: Sidi Yousef (34°39’30.27"N, 10°59’42.70"E), June 2009, 38 ♀♀ and 7 ♂♂ ; Aouled Yaneg (34°40’22.19"N, 11°08’15.07"E), June 2009, 56 ♀♀, 23 ♂♂ and 18 immatures ; Ramla (34°43’17.06"N, 11°12’34.35"E), June 2009, 42 ♀♀ and 10 ♂♂ ; Mellita (34°39’24.43"N, 11°1’59.42"E), June 2009, 23 ♀♀ and 13 ♂♂ ; Ataya (34°44’26.25"N, 11°18’8.47"E), May 2011, 12 ♀♀ and 21 ♂♂ . Gafsa: Oasis Gafsa (34°24’55.53"N, 8°44’42.69"E), April 2008, 29 ♀♀ and 5 ♂♂ ; Guetar (34°20’16.39"N, 8°54’55.85"E), April 2008, 64 ♀♀ and 55 ♂♂ ; Bou Omran (34°21’38.47"N, 9°8’16.61"E), April 2008, 23 ♀♀ and 14 ♂♂ ; Bou Saad (34°21’57.24"N, 9°9’48.46"E), April 2008, 13 ♀♀ and 8 ♂♂ . Cap Bon: Grambalia (36°36’46.35"N, 10°31’30.59"E), 8 ♀♀ and 13 ♂♂ , February 2010, 7 ♀♀; Beni Kalled (36°36’44.77"N, 10°31’30.72"E), February 2010, 30 ♀♀ . Sidi Bouzid: Regueb (34°50’26.08"N, 9°47’49.20"E), May 2009, 12 ♀♀ and 26 ♂♂ ; Sidi Bouzid (35°02’03.70"N, 9°25’24.77"E), May 2009, 38 ♀♀ and 16 ♂♂ .

Note — This species is a pest of olive trees in the Mediterranean area and is especially injurious to young trees ( Elhadi and Birger 1999) and in nurseries. It causes leaf and fruit deformation, and seriously reduces the amount and quality of olives and oils. In Tunisia, the pest is very common in all olivegrowing localities and it reaches very high population densities. It is often found associated with O. maxwelli .