Abstract
ABSTRACT The two-spotted spider mite Tetranychus urticae Koch is an excellent model organism among phytophagous mites. Therefore, the investigation for alternative host plants for a mass rearing programme is of great interest. However, its development and reproduction are affected by host plant variability. In this study, the biology of T. urticae on three cultivars of strawberry, three cultivars of chrysanthemum, and two cultivars of papaya were studied under constant laboratory conditions. Basic leaf nutritional contents were analysed as the factors determining the host quality. Results showed that the development, oviposition period, adult longevity, and female fecundity of the mite were significantly influenced by host plants. The greatest performance of T. urticae was recorded on the Sweet Charlie cultivar of strawberry where the development lasted for 9.03 ± 0.40 days, the total fecundity was 46.75 ± 11.62 eggs per female, and the intrinsic rate of increase was 0.272. The results also suggest that higher protein proportion of the leaf significantly increases mite fecundity. The longer developmental time and lower fecundity of the mite could be the result of nutritional inadequacy and/or imbalance in the poor quality host plants such as chrysanthemum.
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