A network that helps people worldwide obtain rapid advice and information on crop protection, including the identification and management of plant pests.
PestNet is a network that helps people worldwide obtain rapid advice and information on crop protection, including the identification and management of plant pests. It started in 1999. Anyone with an interest in plant protection is welcome to join. PestNet is free and is moderated, ensuring that messages are confined to plant protection.
October 2016. Pictures of a reddish spider mite attacking: bean (below), wild amaranthus (middle), and slippery cabbage (top) in Fiji. Other crops are also being attacked. Not sure if same species but physical characteristics seemed like Tetranychus ludeni. Is that likely to be correct.
Tetranychus ludeni
is certainly a good chance, but there are other Tetranychus with broad host ranges and that look much the same. Tetranychus neocaledonicus would be a prime suspect and it’s the most common species in north Queensland and attacks many host plants. It’s easily the most common species of Tetranychus in Brisbane gardens, too. Other possibilities are the red form of Tetranychus urticae and Tetranychus marianae. The latter tends to be the most common Tetranychus after T. neocaledonicus in surveys from northern Australia.
Whatever the species, you need a lateral slide-mount of a male (and a dorsal mount of a female) to work out species by their morphology.