Interactions of Acariphagous Arthropods in the System “Host Plant—Spider Mite Tetranychus urticae Koch (Acarina, Tetranychidae)—Predatory Mite Phytoseiulus persimilis Ath.-H. (Parasitiformes, Phytoseiidae) and Predatory Midge Feltiella luboviae Fedotova et Kozlova (Diptera, Cecidomyiidae)” on Cucumber Cultivars

Abstract

Relations between the predatory species were studied in the tritrophic system “plant—spider mite Tetranychus urticae—predatory mite Phytoseiulus persimilis + predatory gall midge Feltiella luboviae” on Ginga F1 and Muromsky 36 cucumber cultivars, differing in their resistance to the phytophage. It was shown that the formation and functioning of the consortium were largely influenced by the resistance properties of the cucumber cultivars and the bioecological features of the consorts. The acariphages most effectively suppressed the pest at the initial stage of consortium formation, when their first generation was active. The efficiency of the predatory midge F. luboviae on the susceptible cucumber cultivar was lower in the presence of the predatory mite Ph. persimilis. The resistant cultivar not only compensated for the negative effect of one predator (Ph. persimilis) on the oviposition behavior of the other predator (F. luboviae), but also increased the efficiency of combined use of the acariphages as compared to their separate application.