False spider mites.

Abstract

Abstract The false spider mites, as the Tenuipalpidae are commonly known, also belong to the superfamily Tetranychoidea in the order Prostigmata, as does the spider mite family Tetranychidae. They are not true spider mites because they do not produce silk webbing on plants. They are also known as flat mites because most species are dorsoventrally flattened. False spider mites are phytophagous. They are slow-moving and are usually found on the lower surface of the leaves near the midrib or veins. Some species feed on the bark. Others live in flower heads, under leaf sheaths or in galls. Only a small number of species belonging to a few genera have become pests of economic plants and they are most commonly found on tropical fruit crops and ornamental plants. The family Tenuipalpidae has some 800 described species belonging to over 25 genera, but many others are yet to be discovered and described. The family consists of three subfamilies, with most species belonging to the Brevipalpinae and Tenuipalpinae. Tenuipalpus and Brevipalpus are the two largest genera and also the economically most important ones. This chapter presents the morphological characters, life history and biology, and important greenhouse species (i.e. B. obovatus, B. phoenicis, B. russulus and T. pacificus) of false spider mites.