Tetranychus lombardinii Baker & Pritchard, 1960

Toroitich, Faith J., Ueckermann, Edward A., Theron, Pieter D. & Knapp, Markus, 2009, The tetranychid mites (Acari: Tetranychidae) of Kenya and a redescription of the species Peltanobia erasmusi Meyer (Acari: Tetranychidae) based on males, Zootaxa 2176, pp. 33-47 : 44

Tetranychus lombardinii Baker & Pritchard, 1960

Aedeagus curves dorsad, forming a knob about one fourth to one fifth length of dorsal margin of shaft; knob and shaft axes almost parallel; posterior projection small and acute; anterior projection rounded ( Figure 5 B) male empodium I with 2 proximoventral spurs and a minute mediodorsal spur; empodium II with 3 pairs of proximoventral hairs and a tiny mediodorsal spur; female striae between third (e1) and fourth (f1) pairs of dorsocentral setae longitudinal, a diamond-shaped figure formed between these setae; dorsal lobes narrow, triangular, mostly taller than broad and well separated at their bases; in some specimens ventral lobes weak or absent but usually low, semicircular, broad and extend from genital opening to near gnathosoma; lobes on prodorsum very broad and hardly more than an occasional incision of striae.

Specimens examined: Five males and several females collected on Morus sp. ( Moraceae ) from ICIPE compound, Nairobi (S01°13.140'; E036°53.440').

Remark: This species has been reported from the Tropics, Australia and Oriental Indian regions. It has a wide host range and occurs as a pest of several agricultural crops ( Meyer, 1974). The first record of this species in Kenya was on Spinacia oleraceae (Amaranthaceae) from Ruiru, Thika district ( Baker and Pritchard, 1960). It appears uniformly red in colour in the field.

Figures

FIGURE 5. Tetranychus sp. aedegi modified after Meyer, 1974 (with permission).: (A) T. evansi aedeagus; (B) T. lombardiini aedeagus; (C) T. ludeni aedeagus; (D) T. neocaledonicus aedeagus; (E) T. urticae aedeagus.