Red palm mite - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Raoiella indica, commonly known as the red palm mite, is a species of mite

Mite

Mites, along with ticks, are small arthropods belonging to the subclass Acari and the class Arachnida. The scientific discipline devoted to the study of ticks and mites is called acarology.-Diversity and systematics:...

belonging to the family Tenuipalpidae

Tenuipalpidae

Tenuipalpidae, also called "flat mites" or "false spider mites", are a family of mites, closely related to the Tetranychidae. They are reddish, slow moving, and normally feed near the midrib or veins on the underside of leaves. Several species, among them Raoiella indica, are important crop pests....

. A pest of several species of palm in the Middle East

Middle East

The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...

and South East Asia, it is now becoming established throughout the Caribbean

Caribbean

The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...

. The invasion of this species is the biggest mite explosion ever observed in the Americas

Americas

The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...

Distribution

This species is indigenous to Egypt

Egypt

Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

, India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

, Iran

Iran

Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...

, Israel

Israel

The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...

, Mauritius

Mauritius

Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...

, Oman

Oman

Oman , officially called the Sultanate of Oman , is an Arab state in southwest Asia on the southeast coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by the United Arab Emirates to the northwest, Saudi Arabia to the west, and Yemen to the southwest. The coast is formed by the Arabian Sea on the...

, Pakistan

Pakistan

Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...

, Philippines

Philippines

The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...

, Réunion

Réunion

Réunion is a French island with a population of about 800,000 located in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar, about south west of Mauritius, the nearest island.Administratively, Réunion is one of the overseas departments of France...

, Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...

, Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...

, Sudan

Sudan

Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...

, Thailand

Thailand

Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...

and the United Arab Emirates

United Arab Emirates

The United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...

.

It is considered an invasive species in Dominican Republic

Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...

, Guadeloupe

Guadeloupe

Guadeloupe is an archipelago located in the Leeward Islands, in the Lesser Antilles, with a land area of 1,628 square kilometres and a population of 400,000. It is the first overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. As with the other overseas departments, Guadeloupe...

, Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico

Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...

, Saint Martin

Saint Martin

Saint Martin is an island in the northeast Caribbean, approximately east of Puerto Rico. The 87 km2 island is divided roughly 60/40 between France and the Kingdom of the Netherlands ; however, the Dutch side has the larger population. It is one of the smallest sea islands divided between...

, Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad and Tobago officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is an archipelagic state in the southern Caribbean, lying just off the coast of northeastern Venezuela and south of Grenada in the Lesser Antilles...

, the US Virgin Islands, Granada

Granada

Granada is a city and the capital of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence of three rivers, the Beiro, the Darro and the Genil. It sits at an elevation of 738 metres above sea...

, Haiti

Haiti

Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...

and Jamaica

Jamaica

Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...

.

In 2007, the red palm mite was discovered in Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

. As of April, 2009, this pest has been found at almost 400 sites in five counties there.

Description

This species can be distinguished from most other mites by its colour, flat body, long spatulate seta

Seta

Seta is a biological term derived from the Latin word for "bristle". It refers to a number of different bristle- or hair-like structures on living organisms.-Animal setae:In zoology, most "setae" occur in invertebrates....

e, and droplets on the dorsal body setae. There is also a noticeable absence of the webbing associated with numerous other spider mites.

The red palm mite has a long, bright red, spatulate body. During all stages of life, this species is red, with adult females often showing black patches on their backs after feeding.

Red palm mite eggs are 0.12 mm long and 0.09 wide. The eggs are smooth and can be found in groups attached to the underside of leaves.

Larva

Larva

A larva is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle...

e are 0.18–.020 mm in length and only have three pairs of legs. Nymphs are 0.18–0.25 mm long.

Adults are approximately 0.32 mm long. Females are larger than males and have a triangular body.

Life cycle

The egg stage ranges from 6 to 9 days. Development from egg to adult ranges from 23 to 28 days for females, and 20 to 22 days for males. The red palm mite lives for about 26 days.

Hosts

This mite has been found on 32 different palm species. In the Caribbean, this species also infests banana

Banana

Banana is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa and for the fruit they produce. Bananas come in a variety of sizes and colors when ripe, including yellow, purple, and red....

plants, heliconia

Heliconia

Heliconia, derived from the Greek word helikonios, is a genus of about 100 to 200 species of flowering plants native to the tropical Americas and the Pacific Ocean islands west to Indonesia. Many species of Heliconia are found in rainforests or tropical wet forests of these regions...

s and ginger

Ginger

Ginger is the rhizome of the plant Zingiber officinale, consumed as a delicacy, medicine, or spice. It lends its name to its genus and family . Other notable members of this plant family are turmeric, cardamom, and galangal....

**Known hosts of the red palm mite in the Caribbean and Florida as of 12–05–2009**
Family	Location	Species	Common name
Palmae	Caribbean	Acoelorraphe wrightii, (Griseb.& H.A. Wendl.)	Everglades palm, paurotis palm
Palmae	Florida	Adonidia merrilli, (Becc.) Becc. Veitchia H.A. Wendl.)	Manila palm, Christmas palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Areca catechu Areca catechu Areca catechu is the areca palm or areca nut palm, , a species of palm which grows in much of the tropical Pacific, Asia, and parts of east Africa. The palm is believed to have originated in either Malaysia or the Philippines...	betel nut palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Areca Areca Areca is a genus of about 50 species of single-stemmed palms in the family Arecaceae, found in humid tropical forests from Malaysia to the Solomon Islands. The generic name Areca is derived from a name used locally on the Malabar Coast of India.... , spp.
Palmae	Florida	Aiphanes caryotifolia, (H.B.K.) H.A. Wendl.	Coyure palm, ruffle palm, spine palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Aiphanes Aiphanes Aiphanes is a genus of spiny palms which is native to tropical regions of South and Central America and the Caribbean. There are about 26 species in the genus, ranging in size from understorey shrubs with subterranean stems to subcanopy trees as much as tall... , spp. Willd.	Multiple crown palm, ruffle palm
Palmae	Florida	Archontophoenix alexandrae Archontophoenix alexandrae Archontophoenix alexandrae is a palm native to Queensland, Australia.... , (F. Muell.)	Alexander palm, king palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Bactris plumeriana Bactris plumeriana Bactris plumeriana is a species of palm endemic to Hispaniola.According to Salzman and Judd B. plumeriana forms a clade with B. cubensis and B. jamaicana, the other Greater Antillean Bactris species.-References:... , Mart.	coco macaco, prickly pole
Palmae	Florida	Beccariophoenix madagascariensis Beccariophoenix madagascariensis Beccariophoenix madagascariensis, commonly known as the No Windows Beccariophoenix or Coastal Beccariophoenix, is a species of flowering plant in the Arecaceae family. It is a large Coconut relative that is endangered in its habitat in Madagascar.-Beccariophoenix sp... , Jum. & H. Perrier	giant windowpane palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Bismarckia nobilis, Hildebr. & H.A. Wendl.	Bismarck palm
Palmae	Florida	Butia capitata Butia capitata Butia capitata, also known as Pindo Palm or Jelly Palm, is a palm native to Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay.This palm grows up to 6m in a slow but steady manner... , (Mart) Becc.	pindo palm, jelly palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Caryota mitis, Lour.	fishtail palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Chamaedorea Chamaedorea Chamaedorea is a genus of 107 species of palms, native to subtropical and tropical regions of the Americas.. The name is derived from the Greek words χαμαί , meaning "on the ground," and δωρεά , meaning "gift." It refers to the easily reached fruits or the plants' low-growing nature.Chamaedorea... , spp. Willd.	chamaedorea palm
Palmae	Florida	Coccothrinax miraguama Coccothrinax miraguama Coccothrinax miraguama is a palm which is endemic to Cuba.Four subspecies are recognised: C. miraguama subsp. arenicola, C. miraguama subsp. havanensis, C. miraguama subsp. miraguama, and C. miraguama subsp. roseocarpa.... , (H.B.K.) Becc.	Miraguama palm
Palmae	Florida	Cocos nucifera, L.	coconut palm
Palmae	Florida	Corypha umbraculifera, L.	Talipot palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Dictyosperma album, (Bory) H.A. Wendl. & Drude ex Scheff.	princess palm, hurricane palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Dypsis decaryi Dypsis decaryi Dypsis decaryi is a palm tree commonly known as the Triangle palm native to the Madagascan rainforest. It can reach 15 metres in height although it is rarely found that tall outside of its native habitat due to it being relatively new to cultivation... , (Jum.) Beentje & J. Dransf.	triangle palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Dypsis lutescens Dypsis lutescens Dypsis lutescens, also known as Golden Cane Palm, Areca Palm, or Butterfly Palm, is a plant in the Arecaceae family. It is native to Madagascar.-Description:... , (H.A. Wendl.) Beentje & J.Dransf.	areca palm, golden cane palm, butterfly palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Elaeis guineensis, Jacq.	African oil palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Licuala grandis Licuala grandis Licuala grandis, the Ruffled Fan Palm, Vanuatu Fan Palm or Palas Palm is a species of palm tree in the Arecaceae family, native to Vanuatu, an island in the Pacific.-References:* * *... , H.A. Wendl.	licuala palm, ruffled fan palm
Palmae	Florida	Livistona Livistona Livistona is a genus of 36 species of palms , native to southern and southeastern Asia, Australasia, and the Horn of Africa... , chinensis (Jacq.) R. Br. ex Mart.	Chinese fan palm
Palmae	Florida	Phoenix canariensis, Hort. ex Chabaud	Canary Islands date palm
Palmae	Florida	Phoenix dactylifera, L.	date palm
Palmae	Florida	Phoenix reclinata Phoenix reclinata Phoenix reclinata or Senegal Date Palm is a species of flowering plant in the palm family native to tropical Africa, Madagascar, and the Comoro Islands. The plants are found from sea level to 3000 m, in rain forest clearings, monsoonal forests and rocky mountainsides.-Description:P... , Jacq.	Senegal date palm
Palmae	Florida	Phoenix roebelenii Phoenix roebelenii Phoenix roebelenii is a species of date palm native to southeastern Asia from southwestern China , northern Laos and northern Vietnam,... , O’Brien	pygmy date palm, roebelenii palm
Palmae	Florida	Pritchardia pacifica Pritchardia pacifica Pritchardia pacifica is a tree from the Arecaceae family, native to Tonga now also found elsewhere including in Fiji and Samoa. Commonly known as the Fiji fan palm after one of its uses, it can grow to a height of ten metres. The flowers are of a yellow green colour and the fruits are brown.... , B.C. Seem. & H.A. Wendl.	Fiji fan palm
Palmae	Florida	Pseudophoenix sargentii Pseudophoenix sargentii Pseudophoenix sargentii is a medium-sized palm found in the northern Caribbean, south to Dominica and adjacent parts of the mainland -Description:Pseudophoenix sargentii is usually near the sea... , H.A. Wendl. ex Sarg.	buccaneer palm, Sargent’s cherry palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Pseudophoenix vinifera Pseudophoenix vinifera Pseudophoenix vinifera is a palm species endemic to Hispaniola.Pseudophoenix vinifera was used in the past of palm wine production. Trees were cut down and the pith extracted, especially from the swollen portion of the stem... , (Mart.) Becc.	cacheo, katié, wine palm
Palmae	Florida	Ptychosperma elegans Ptychosperma elegans Ptychosperma elegans, also known as the "Solitaire palm" and the "Alexander palm," is a very slender palm common to Florida but native to Australia. It is sometimes confused with Archontophoenix alexandrae which is a much larger palm but appears similar in the immature form... , (R. Br.) Blume	solitaire palm, Alexander palm
Palmae	Florida	Ptychosperma macarthurii, (H.A. Wendl.) Nichols	Macarthur palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Rhapis excelsa Rhapis excelsa Rhapis excelsa also known as Broadleaf Lady Palm or Bamboo Palm is a species of fan palm in the genus Rhapis, probably native to southern China and Taiwan. It is not known in the wild; all known plants come from cultivated groups in China... , (Thunb.) A. Henry	lady palm, bamboo palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Roystonea borinquena Roystonea borinquena Roystonea borinquena, sometimes known as the Puerto Rico royal palm, is a species of palm which is native to Hispaniola, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.-Description:... , O.F. Cook	Puerto Rico royal palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Roystonea regia Roystonea regia Roystonea regia, commonly known as the Cuban royal palm, Florida royal palm, or simply the royal palm is a species of palm which is native to southern Florida, Mexico and parts of Central America and the northern Caribbean. It ranged into central Florida in the eighteenth century but in modern... , (HBK) O.F. Cook	Florida royal palm
Palmae	Florida	Schippia concolor, Burret	silver pimento palm
Palmae	Florida	Syagrus romanzoffiana Syagrus romanzoffiana Syagrus romanzoffiana is a palm native to South America, from northern Argentina north to eastern Brazil and west to eastern Bolivia. It is very similar to the coconut palm. It had been classified within the Cocos genus as Cocos plumosa, was assigned to Arecastrum, then moved to Syagrus... , (Cham.) Glassman	queen palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Syagrus schizophylla, (Mart.) Glassman	arikury palm
Palmae	Florida	Thrinax radiata, Lodd. ex J.A. & J.H. Schultes	Florida thatch palm
Palmae	Florida	Veitchia Veitchia Veitchia is a genus of flowering plant in the Arecaceae family.It contains the following species:* Veitchia filifera* Veitchia joannis * Veitchia macdanielsii* Veitchia merrillii* Veitchia metiti... , spp. H.A. Wendl.	Manila palm
Palmae	Caribbean	Washingtonia filifera Washingtonia filifera Washingtonia filifera , with the common names California Fan Palm , Desert Fan Palm, Cotton palm, and Arizona Fan Palm. It is a palm native to southwestern North America between an elevation range of , at seeps, desert bajadas, and springs where underground water is continuously available... , (Lind. ex André) H.A. Wendl.	fan palm
Palmae	Florida	Washingtonia robusta Washingtonia robusta Washingtonia robusta is a palm tree native to western Sonora and Baja California Sur in northwestern Mexico. It grows to tall, rarely up to . The leaves have a petiole up to long, and a palmate fan of leaflets up to 1 m long. The inflorescence is up to long, with numerous small pale orange-pink... , H.A. Wendl.	Mexican fan palm
Palmae	Florida	Wodyetia bifurcata, A.K. Irvine	foxtail palm
Musaceae	Caribbean	Heliconia bihai Heliconia bihai Heliconia bihai of the Heliconiaceae family is an erect herb typically growing taller than 1.5 m... , (L.) L.	Macaw flower
Musaceae	Caribbean	Heliconia caribaea, Lam.	wild plantain, Balisier
Musaceae	Caribbean	Heliconia psittacorum Heliconia psittacorum Heliconia psittacorum is a perennial herb native to the Caribbean and northern South America. It is often cultivated as a tropical ornamental plant.... , L. f.	parrot flower
Musaceae	Caribbean	Heliconia rostrata Heliconia rostrata Heliconia rostrata is an herbaceous perennial native to the north western region of South America. Other Heliconias grow in the upright position , their cup-shaped flowers storing water for birds and insects... , Ruiz & Pavon	lobster claw heliconia
Musaceae	Florida	Heliconia Heliconia Heliconia, derived from the Greek word helikonios, is a genus of about 100 to 200 species of flowering plants native to the tropical Americas and the Pacific Ocean islands west to Indonesia. Many species of Heliconia are found in rainforests or tropical wet forests of these regions... , spp.
Musaceae	Caribbean	Musa acuminata Musa acuminata Musa acuminata is a species of wild banana native to Southeast Asia. It is the progenitor of modern edible bananas, along with Musa balbisiana. First cultivated by humans around 8000 years ago, it is one of the earliest examples of domesticated plants.-Taxonomy and nomenclature:Musa acuminata... , Colla	edible banana, plantain
Musaceae	Caribbean	Musa balbisiana Musa balbisiana Musa balbisiana is a species of wild banana native to South Asia. It is one of the ancestors of modern cultivated bananas along with Musa acuminata. It grows lush leaves in clumps and grows with a more upright habit than most cultivated bananas. Flowers grow in inflorescences coloured red to... , Colla	wild banana
Musaceae	Caribbean	Musa coccinea Musa coccinea Musa coccinea, commonly known as scarlet banana or red-flowering banana, is a bat-pollinated plant in the banana and plantain family native to tropical China and Vietnam. Elsewhere M. coccinea is cultivated for its ornamental value. M... Andrews	red-flowering banana
Musaceae	Caribbean	Musa corniculata, Rumph.	red banana
Musaceae	Florida	Musa Musa (genus) Musa is one of three genera in the family Musaceae; it includes bananas and plantains. There are over 50 species of Musa with a broad variety of uses.... , spp.	banana, plantain
Musaceae	Caribbean	Musa acuminata × balbisiana Plantain Plantain is the common name for herbaceous plants of the genus Musa. The fruit they produce is generally used for cooking, in contrast to the soft, sweet banana... , L.	edible banana, plantain
Musaceae	Caribbean	Ravenala madagascariensis, Sonn.	traveler’s tree
Musaceae	Caribbean	Strelitzia reginae Strelitzia reginae Strelitzia reginae is a monocotyledonous flowering plant indigenous to South Africa. Common names include Strelitzia, Crane Flower or Bird of Paradise, though these names are also collectively applied to other species in the genus Strelitzia... , Aiton	bird of paradise, crane flower
Pandanaceae	Caribbean	Pandanus utilis Pandanus utilis The common screwpine is, despite its name, a tropical tree and not a pine.It is native to Madagascar, Mauritius, and the Seychelles.It has been successfully grown by gardeners in Puerto Rico, Florida, and California.-Description:... , Bory	screw pine
Zingiberaceae	Caribbean	Alpinia purpurata, (Vieill.) K. Schum.	red ginger, jungle king/queen
Zingiberaceae	Florida	Alpinia zerumbet Alpinia zerumbet Alpinia zerumbet is a Chinese perennial plant of the ginger family .... , (Pers.) B.L. Burtt & R.M. Sm.	shell ginger, pink porcelain lily
Zingiberaceae	Caribbean	Etlingera elatior Etlingera elatior Etlingera elatior is a species of herbaceous perennial plant... , (Jack.) R.M. Sm.	red torch ginger

Survey, detection and damage

The red palm mite forms colonies on the undersides of leaves. There, they feed on the contents of the cells of the leaves. This feeding can cause localized yellowing of the leaves.

Adults are usually visible to the naked eye.

Dispersal

Like most other plant feeding mites, this species disperses on the wind. Tropical storms and hurricanes can distribute this mite over wide areas.

Management

Chemical control is considered impractical due to the large size of most palms. Some biological control agents have proven useful in the Eastern Hemisphere

Eastern Hemisphere

The Eastern Hemisphere, also Eastern hemisphere or eastern hemisphere, is a geographical term for the half of the Earth that is east of the Prime Meridian and west of 180° longitude. It is also used to refer to Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australasia, vis-à-vis the Western Hemisphere, which includes...

, including predatory mites, beetles, lacewings and other mite predators.