Goji Berry Gall Mite Expansion in Europe, with Emphasis on Southeastern Part of Romania

In Europe, the goji crop is expanding rapidly, to satisfy the increased market demand for functional foods, with effects in chronic diseases treatment (cancer, diabetes, atherosclerosis, etc.). Romania has become in recent years one of the most important growers of goji berry, especially for organic production, as the species was quite resistant to main pests and diseases. Still, in 2008, a non-indigenous species of Eriophyid mites, called Aceria kuko, was identified on goji plants in UK and spread rapidly throughout the EU. The plant protection institutions took eradication measures, however the pest continued to spread in new plantations and recently on spontaneous plants. Based on GBIF, iNaturalist, personal observations and communication, the paper presents the current distribution of goji berry gall mite in Europe and in Romania and also suggests the use of new citizen science tool - ProtectGoji maps, that aims both to increase awareness of goji producers and consumers about this pest and to geolocate the species expansion in Romania for a better containment and control strategy.

Interaction of the causal agent of apricot bud gall Acalitus phloeocoptes (Nalepa) with apricot: Implications in infested tissues

Apricot bud gall mite, Acalitus phloeocoptes (Nalepa), is a destructive arthropod pest that causes significant economic losses to apricot trees worldwide. The current study explores the ways to understand the mode of dispersal of A. phloeocoptes, the development and ultrastructure of apricot bud gall, and the role of phytohormones in the formation of the apricot bud galls. The results demonstrated that the starch granules in the bud axon were extended at the onset of the attack. During the later stages of the attack, the cytoplasm was found to deteriorate in infected tissues. Furthermore, we have observed that the accumulation of large amounts of cytokinin (zeatin, ZT) and auxin (indoleacetic acid, IAA) led to rapid bud proliferation during rapid growth period, while abscisic acid (ABA) controls the development of gall buds and plays a vital role in gall bud maturity. The reduction of gibberellic acid (GA3) content led to rapid lignification at the later phase of bud development. Overall, our results have revealed that the mechanism underlying the interaction of apricot bud gall with its parasite and have provided reliable information for designing valuable Apricot breeding programs. This study will be quite useful for pest management and will provide a comprehensive evaluation of ecology-based cost-effective control, life history and demographic parameters of A. phloeocoptes.

Characterisation and Distribution of Karaka Ōkahu Purepure Virus—A Novel Emaravirus Likely to Be Endemic to New Zealand

We report the first emaravirus on an endemic plant of Aotearoa New Zealand that is, to the best of our knowledge, the country’s first endemic virus characterised associated with an indigenous plant. The new-to-science virus was identified in the endemic karaka tree (Corynocarpus laevigatus), and is associated with chlorotic leaf spots, and possible feeding sites of the monophagous endemic karaka gall mite. Of the five negative-sense RNA genomic segments that were fully sequenced, four (RNA 1–4) had similarity to other emaraviruses while RNA 5 had no similarity with other viral proteins. A detection assay developed to amplify any of the five RNAs in a single assay was used to determine the distribution of the virus. The virus is widespread in the Auckland area, particularly in mature trees at Ōkahu Bay, with only occasional reports elsewhere in the North Island. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that its closest relatives are pear chlorotic leaf spot-associated virus and chrysanthemum mosaic-associated virus, which form a unique clade within the genus Emaravirus. Based on the genome structure, we propose this virus to be part of the family Emaravirus, but with less than 50% amino acid similarity to the closest relatives in the most conserved RNA 1, it clearly is a novel species. In consultation with mana whenua (indigenous Māori authority over a territory and its associated treasures), we propose the name Karaka Ōkahu purepure virus in te reo Māori (the Māori language) to reflect the tree from which it was isolated (karaka), a place where the virus is prevalent (Ōkahu), and the spotted symptom (purepure, pronounced pooray pooray) that this endemic virus appears to cause.

First record of Aceria granati (Canestrini et Massalongo, 1894) in Slovakia – Short Communication

Plant galls of Aceria granati (Canestrini et Massalongo 1894) were observed on the leaves of Punica granatum (Lythraceae) in a private garden in Nitra in July, 2017. Aceria granati is a monophagous gall mite damaging the leaves of Punica granatum. This gall mite was present in one locality in Nitra only and was probably imported from Hungary via the plant trade. This is the first observation of an Aceria granati occurrence in Slovakia.

Three new gall mite records (Acari: Acariformes: Eriophyoidea) from Hungary and supplementary description of two species

Three eriophyoid species are recorded for the first time in Hungary, viz. Paraepitrimerus erigeronsis Xue et Hong collected from Erigeron annuus (L.) Pers. (Asteraceae), Phyllocoptes parvulus (Nalepa) from Potentilla reptans L. (Rosaceae) and Aceria salicina (Nalepa) from Salix alba L. (Salicaceae). In addition, supplementary description of the vagrant phyllocoptine mite, Paraepitrimerus erigeronsis, and the deuterogynous and leaf margin rolling Aculus craspedobius (Nalepa) from Salix integra Thunb. (Salicaceae) is provided.

Aculops fuchsiae (Fuchsia gall mite).

A. fuchsiae, the fuchsia gall mite, is native to South America. It was first found in California, USA in 1981 where it has spread rapidly, and more recently it has invaded Europe since 2003, and it is a declared quarantine pest in both. It attacks only fuchsia (Fuchsia spp.), but once established it is very difficult to eradicate and impacts can be so severe that some growers in California have given up growing the plants entirely.

Interaction of the Causal Agent of Apricot bud gall Acalitus phloeocoptes (Nalepa) with Apricot: Implications in Infested Tissues

Apricot bud gall mite, Acalitus phloeocoptes (Nalepa), is a destructive arthropod pest that causes significant economic losses to apricot trees worldwide. Infested bud examination revealed that the starch granules in the bud axon were extended at the onset of the attack. During the later stages of the attack, the cytoplasm was distributed in apricot. The results also demonstrated that the accumulation of large amounts of cytokinin (zeatin, ZT) and auxin (indoleacetic acid, IAA) led to rapid bud proliferation during the rapid growth period. Abscisic acid (ABA) controls the development of gall buds and plays a vital role in gall bud maturity. The reduction of gibberellic acid (GA3) content led to rapid lignification at the later phase of bud development. Our results reveal the mechanism underlying the interaction of apricot bud gall with its parasite and provide reliable information for designing valuable breeding programs. This study will be quite useful for pest management and will provide a comprehensive evaluation of ecology-based cost-effective control, life history and demographic parameters of A. phloeocoptes.

Functional response of Amblyseius andersoni and Neoseiulus neoreticuloides (Acari: Phytoseiidae) to adults of the wolfberry gall mite Aceria pallida (Acari: Eriophyoidae)

The gall mite, Aceria pallida Keifer (Acari: Eriophyoidae) is an economically important pest of wolfberry Lycium barbarum L. and can cause significant losses to plant production. Two species of phytoseiid predatory mites, Amblyseius andersoni Chant and Neoseiulus neoreticuloides Liang & Hu were found on L. barbarum in Bayan Nur city, Inner Mongolia, China. We assessed the potential of these two phytoseiid species as biological control agents against A. pallida, using functional response experiments with seven prey densities (5, 10, 20, 40, 60, 80 and 100 adults of A. pallida) on a wolfberry leaf under 25ºC ± 1ºC, 60% ± 5% RH and a 16:8 h (L:D) photoperiod. Overall, the predation of both species increased with increase in prey density. The consumption of A. andersoni female was significantly greater than that of conspecific males and N. neoreticuloides female at high prey densities. Both phytoseiid species displayed a type II functional response to A. pallida. Female A. andersoni had a higher attack rate (5.961) and a shorter handling time (0.014 d) than male A. andersoni (1.619; 0.019 d) and female N. neoreticuloides (0.719; 0.023 d). The maximum attack rate (T/Th) was estimated to be 71.43 and 52.63 for female and male A. andersoni, respectively, while it was 43.48 for female N. neoreticuloides. Both female and male A. andersoni consistently consumed significantly more prey than N. neoreticuloides across all densities of A. pallida adults.

First record of Aceria kuko in Slovakia

A sample of goji leaves with blisters was brought from a private garden in Vyšná Kamenica to the Botanical Garden of Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice to identify the problem. The respective plant (Lycium chinense Miller cv. Big Berry) was bought through the internet and these distortions occurred after some time during cultivation. The mites found on the deformed leaves were examined using a light microscope and a scanning electron microscope (SEM) as well. The identity of Aceria kuko (Kishida, 1927), the goji berry gall mite, was confirmed. Other available possible host plants in Košice and the surroundings were checked with no positive findings. However, typical foliar galls on goji plants have been indirectly observed (through the television) in Malinovo near Bratislava. Due to the risk from this mite species not only to the goji (Lycium sp.) but also to the pepper (Capsicum annuum Linnaeus) and some other Solanaceae plants, the respective authorities of the Slovak phytosanitary service were informed.

Principalii dăunători ale culturii nucifere din clasa Arachnida și manifestarea efectelor negative ale acestora

This material results from the research of the nut culture in order to identify pathogenic organisms of the class Arachnida and to represent the effects of these organisms on tree organs. The research was made at the Botanical Garden Institute, Chișinău on a number of 300 trees. This paper includes the identification of the main pests of the class Arachnida, namely: the gall mite of walnut leaves (Aceria tristriata) and the disease named walnut blister mine caused by Aceria erinea. At the same time, the methods of pest control and the negative effects of their presence are exposed here.