Spider mites avoid caterpillar traces to prevent intraguild predation.

ABSTRACT: The phytophagous spider mites Tetranychus kanzawai and Tetranychus urticae can be as small as < 0.5 mm; thus, they are often incidentally consumed along with food plant leaves by voracious lepidopteran larvae (hereafter, 'caterpillars'). Therefore, the ability to avoid such intraguild predation should confer a selective advantage to mites. We experimentally demonstrated that adult females of both mite species avoided settling on food plant leaves with traces of all tested caterpillar species (Bombyx mori, Papilio xuthus, Spodoptera litura and Theretra oldenlandiae). We examined additional interactions using B. mori and T. kanzawai and found that B. mori trace avoidance by T. kanzawai lasted for more than 48 h. Tetranychus kanzawai also avoided B. mori traces on plant stems, along which mit

SUBMITTER: Kinto S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9892025 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature