Female dorsal view |
Other Names
- Typhlodromus cucumeris Oudemans, 1930
- Amblyseius cucumeris (Oudemans)
- Amblyseius (Amblyseius) cucumeris (Oudemans)
- Amblyseius (Neoseiulus) cucumeris (Oudemans)
- Amblyseius (Typhlodromopsis) cucumeris (Oudemans)
- Typhlodromus (Typhlodromus) cucumeris Oudemans
- Typhlodromus (Amblyseius) cucumeris Oudemans
Synonyms
- Amblyseius coprophilus Karg, 1970 [syn. Karg, 1971, see also Chant & McMurtry, 2003]
- Typhlodromus thripsi MacGill, 1939 [syn. Chant, 1959]
Distribution
Cosmopolitan: North America, Europe, Australia, New Zealand; see Moraes et al. (2004) for the complete distribution list. N. cucumeris is produced commercially for use as a biological control agent for thrips and tetranychid mites in greenhouses in Europe (Netherlands, Denmark, England), Canada, USA, Australia, and New Zealand (Collyer, 1982; Workman et al., 1994).
Notes
Females of N. cucumeris are undistinguishable from females of Neoseiulus bellinus - the two species can only be separated by adult males. Chant and McMurtry (2003) and many other authors suspect that N. bellinus is a junior synonym of N. cucumeris, but Schicha (1987) and Beard (2001) list the two species as separate.
References
Beard, J.J. (2001) A review of Australian Neoseiulus Hughes and Typhlodromips de Leon (Acari: Phytoseiidae: Amblyseiinae). Invertebrate Taxonomy 15: 73-158.
Chant, D.A. (1959) Phytoseiid mites (Acarina: Phytoseiidae). Part I. Bionomics of seven species in southeastern England. Part II. A taxonomic review of the family Phytoseiidae, with description of thirty-eight new species. The Canadian Entomologist, Canada, Supplement 12, 166 p.
Chant, D.A., and McMurtry, J.A. (2003) A review of the subfamily Amblyseiinae Muma (Acari: Phytoseiidae): Part I. Neoseiulini new tribe. International Journal of Acarology 29(1): 3-46.
Collyer, E. (1982) The Phytoseiidae of New Zealand (Acarina). 1. The genera Typhlodromus and Amblyseius - keys and new species. New Zealand Journal of Zoology 9: 185-206.
Karg, W. (1971) Acari (Acarina), Milben, Unterordnung Anactinochaeta (Parasitiformes): Die frielebenden Gamasina (Gamasides), Raubmilben. Die Tierwelt Deutschlands, 59. Teil, VEB Gustav Fischer Verlag, Jena, Germany, 475 p.
Moraes, G.J. de, McMurtry, J.A., Denmark, H.A., and Campos, C.B. (2004) A revised catalog of the mite family Phytoseiidae. Zootaxa 434: 1-494.
Schicha, E. (1987) Phytoseiidae of Australia and Neighboring Areas. Indira Publishing House, Oak Park, Michigan, USA. 187 p.
Workman, P.J., Dymock, J.J., Martin, N.A., and Ennis, I.L. (1994) The Potential For Biological Control Of Thrips In Greenhouse Capsicums Using The Predatory Mite, Amblyseius cucumeris. New Zealand Institute for Crop & Food Research Ltd.