Recently, we identified an exotic pest species, Cenopalpus pulcher (Canestrini and Fanzago), the Flat Scarlet mite, infesting both apples and pears in Oregon. This species has never been recorded in the new world before. C. pulcher is a pest mite of pome and stone fruits and is widely distributed in Europe, Middle East, Central Asia, and North Africa. Recent surveys by the Oregon Department of Agriculture showed that this species is now well established in several Oregon counties. We will present our results of two-year (2000-2001) studies on seasonal biology, population dynamic and biological control of C. pulcher. We have found several predatory phytoseiids Typhlodromus pyri Scheuten, Amblyseius andersoni Chant, Kampimodromus abberans (Oudemans), and the stigmaeid Zetzellia mali (Ewing) associated with C. pulcher colonies in both apple and pear orchards of western Oregon. Our last year studies showed that populations of this species on three pear varieties (Anjou, Bartlett and Nijisseiki) reached their peaks from early-August to early-September, and remained high until mid-October.
Species 1: Acarina Tenuipalpidae Cenopalpus pulcher (flat scarlet mite)
Keywords: Invasive species, Biological conrol, Ecology, Population Dynamics
The ESA 2001 Annual Meeting - 2001: An Entomological Odyssey of ESA