Diversity of mites (Arachnida: Acari) on Hymenaea martiana (Leguminosae) in gradient of plant size

Authors

  • Reinaldo José Fazzio Feres Universidade Estadual Paulista, Instituto de Biociências, Letras e Ciências Exatas, Departamento de Zoologia e Botânica

Keywords:

community ecology, height gradient, jatobá, species richness

Abstract

The mite communities on plants with different sizes of Hymenaea martiana Hayne (Leguminosae) were studied in a remnant of Mata Estacional Semidecidual in transition to Cerrado forest. The plants were selected according to the height and perimeter of trunk at 10 cm from the soil. Biweekly samples from March 2007 to March 2008 were performed, with three leaves collected from the outer and three from the inner branches at level of median canopy region for each plant selected. Diversity indexes were applied in order to verify the ecological patterns of mite community among the plants. We recorded 109,445 mites belonging to 28 species and 14 families on H. martiana. The population density of nine species of mites, among 19 classified as frequent and accessory, varied according to the plant size. While the population densities of Chiapacheylus edentatus De Leon, 1962, Euseius cf. errabundus, Pronematus sp., Brevipalpus phoenicis (Geijskes, 1939) and Tarsonemus sp. had positive correlation with the plant size, the densities of Aberoptus aff. cerostructor, Euseius sibelius (De Leon, 1962), Typhlodromalus aripo De Leon, 1967 and Phytoseius nahuatlensis De Leon, 1959 had negative correlation. There was no influence of the plant height on the species richness and total density of mites between leaves from the inner and outer branches sampled in plants with different sizes. The physiological variations between individuals of H. martiana in different ontogenetic stages, in addition to abiotics traits, might have influenced the occurrence and distribution of mites on this plant.

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Published

2010-12-01

How to Cite

Feres, R. J. F. (2010). Diversity of mites (Arachnida: Acari) on Hymenaea martiana (Leguminosae) in gradient of plant size. Biota Neotropica, 10(4). Retrieved from //www.biotaneotropica.org.br/BN/article/view/726

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