Abstract
The phytoseiid Proprioseiopsis mexicanus has been collected from a wide range of plants in the western hemisphere, including many cucurbit agroecosystems in South Carolina, USA. Our aim was to characterize the lifestyle of P. mexicanus and its potential as a natural enemy of Tetranychus urticae, a common pest in cucurbits. We determined developmental time, pre-oviposition time, and fecundity of females on pollen-only diets from a commercial Typha spp. supplement source, Citrullus lanatus, Cucurbita maxima, Cucurbita moschata, Cucurbita pepo, Delosperma cooperi, Trifolium incarnatum, and on T. urticae and a combination of T. urticae and Typha spp. pollen. Female development time differed based on diet—development was fastest on C. lanatus and D. cooperi diets (ca. 3 days) and slowest on Typha pollen diet (ca. 5 days). Pre-oviposition time was shorter for females fed C. lanatus and T. incarnatum (1.6 days) and longest when fed Typha pollen (3.1 days). Citrullus lanatus, T. incarnatum, and D. cooperi pollen diets resulted in more eggs/day compared to other diets. Cucurbita moschata pollen resulted in the lowest oviposition rate (0.69 eggs/day). Because these pollens varied in size, we examined pollen size as a factor in developmental and reproductive success. With the exception of Typha pollen, small-pollen diets (C. lanatus, D. cooperi, and T. incarnatum) resulted in faster development, shorter pre-oviposition time, and higher fecundity than large-pollen diets (Cucurbita spp.). We concluded that P. mexicanus is a generalist predator that may require pollen for survival and reproduction, but alone this species may not be an effective predator of T. urticae.
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Acknowledgements
We thank Amnon Levi (USDA Vegetable Laboratory, Charleston, SC) for providing Citrullus lanatus pollen for this experiment. We thank the lab of Anthony Keinath for the use of equipment in our pollen diameter measurements. This work was supported by the NIFA Postdoctoral Fellowship grant no. 2018-67012-27994/Project accession no. 1015537 from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Mention of trade names or commercial products in this publication is solely for the purpose of providing specific information and does not imply recommendation or endorsement by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
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This work was supported by the NIFA Postdoctoral Fellowship grant no. 2018–67012-27994/Project accession no. 1015537 from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
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All authors contributed to the study concept and design. Material preparation and data collection were performed by MAF and JC. Data analysis was performed by MAF. The first draft of the manuscript was written by MAF and all authors commented on the previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Farfan, M.A., Coffey, J. & Schmidt-Jeffris, R.A. Suitability of food resources for Proprioseiopsis mexicanus, a potentially important natural enemy in eastern USA agroecosystems. Exp Appl Acarol 84, 121–134 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10493-021-00622-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10493-021-00622-6