The tetranychid mites (Acari: Tetranychidae) of Kenya and a redescription of the species Peltanobia erasmusi Meyer (Acari: Tetranychidae) based on males
Author
Toroitich, Faith J.
Author
Ueckermann, Edward A.
Author
Theron, Pieter D.
Author
Knapp, Markus
text
Zootaxa
2009
2176
33
47
journal article
10.5281/zenodo.189364
b7969d38-5da7-4afd-94d6-d1847742fe31
1175-5326
189364
Eutetranychus orientalis
Klein, 1936
This species is characterized as follows: Striae on prodorsum longitudinal and tuberculate; striation pattern between second (d1) and third pairs of dorsocentral setae (e1) vary from longitudinal to V-shaped; 13 pairs of dorsocentral setae set on tubercles and vary in length and shape; dorsolateral setae (c2, d2, e2 and f2) long and lanceolate, subspatulate or broadly spatulate with dorsocentral setae (c1, d1, e1, f1 and h1) short and spatulate, lanceolate or subspatulate.
The leg chaetotaxy as follows: tibiae
10-6-6-7
; genua 5-5-2-2; femora 8-6-3-1; coxae 2-1-1-1.
Specimens examined:
Three males and five females collected on
Citrus limon
(Rutaceae)
from Baringo district (
N00º29.132’
;
E036º00.906’
); five males and eight females on orange
Citrus sinensis
(Rutaceae)
from Makueni district (
S01°50.188'
;
E037°38.166'
).
More specimen of this species were collected on
Citrus paradisi
(Rutaceae)
from Kilifi and
Melia azadarach
(Meliaceae)
from Kisumu.
Remarks:
This species can be separated from the closely related
E. africanus
by the presence of only one seta on coxa II and an aedeagus whose bent portion is longer than the dorsal margin of the shaft (
Figure 4
C).
It has a wide distribution in the Afrotropical, Australasian and Palearctic regions as a pest of
citrus
. It has also been reported on members of other host families. In
Kenya
, this species was previously recorded on
Citrus
sp. (
Rutaceae
) from Thika district,
Kenya
(
Meyer, 1987
) and in this study it was collected from
citrus
trees in most of the areas where sampling was done. They are grey in colour and in cases of severe infestation, the plant appears dull in colour as though covered by a grey layer of soot.