Predation of Amblyseius longispinosus (Acari: Phytoseiidae) on Schizotetranychus nanjingensis (Acari: Tetranychidae), a spider mite injurious to bamboo in Fujian, China

Schizotetranychus nanjingensis Ma & Yuan is a mite pest injurious to the giant bamboo ( Phyllostachys pubscens ) in Fujian, China. The predatory mite Amblyseius longispinosus was explored as a potential biocontrol agent against S. nanjingensis in a series of experiments. Functional response experiments at six different temperatures showed that handling time ( Th ) generally decreased with temperature, whereas successful attack rate ( a ) increased with temperature and levelled off at >20¡ (Table 2). Judging by a/Th values, A. longispinosus was most efficient against S. nanjingensis at 30-35¡C, about half as efficient at 20 and 25¡C and performed poorly at 10-15¡C. The rate of oviposition increased linearly with prey density. As expected, the number of eggs laid by predators increased linearly with the number of prey they consumed. With a fixed number of prey available, predation rates per predator decreased with predator density. The potential of A. longispinosus as a biocontrol agent against A. nanjingensis is discussed.