Biology of Stigmaeopsis spider mites (Acari: Tetranychidae)
2018
Saito, Y. (Hokkaido University, Sapporo (Japan). Research Faculty of Agriculture)
Here, I reviewed the studies on Stigmaeopsis spider mites to demonstrate their useful and unique aspects. Approximately 70 reports on Stigmaeopsis taxonomy, life history, diapause, life type, nesting behavior, feces depositing behavior, social behavior, male-to-male aggression, genetics, molecular phylogeny and predator-prey interaction were addressed. It is clear that Stigmaeopsis species are excellent materials for evolutionary ecology and genetic studies, because of their low mobility, rapid development, ease of rearing, diverse genetic systems and variable ecology. The main topics described here were as follows: Stigmaeopsis species show communal social and sub-social life types. Cooperation and aggressiveness vary among species, making them promising materials for the study of kin selection operating on behavior. Furthermore, despite their haplo-diploid genetic system, this spider mite group has retained female-limited recessive genes that cause inbreeding depression. Variations in sociality have evolved partly through predation pressure and kin selection. Furthermore, I pointed out the problems that have been-and others that still need to be-solved in order to learn how Stigmaeopsis species evolved.
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