Mites ( Arachnida : Acari ) associated with hog plum trees ( Spondias mombin L . ) in the Brazilian Amazon .

This is the first survey of mites associated with hog plum trees in the state of Amapá, Brazilian Amazon. We collected 32 species of mites from 17 families. Among the phytophagous mites, Davisella spondias Reis & Navia (Diptilomiopidae) was the most abundant species. Among predator mites, the family Phytoseiidae presented the highest richness of species.

The knowledge of diversity, taxonomy, phylogeny and distribution for most organisms is scarce in the Brazilian Amazon, especially for megadiverse taxa such as arthropods (SILVA et al., 2005).Regarding mites, records in the region are occasional and restricted to species of economic importance.In the Amapá State, located at the northern of Eastern Amazon, only two studies were carried out aiming to survey de mites diversity.In the first one, Mineiro et al. (2009) reported the mites ocurrence in Psidium guajava L., Theobroma grandiflorum (Willd.Ex Spreng.)K. Schum, Citrus sinensis (L.) Osbeck, Syzygium samarangense Merr.& Perry, Byrsonima crassifolia (L.) Rich., Pouteria caimito (Ruiz & Pav.) Radlk., Capsicum sp., Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp, and Manihot esculenta Crantz.In the second one, Deus et al. (2012) drew up a list of mites associated with rubber trees (Hevea brasiliensis Müll.Arg.).
The hog plum (Spondias mombin L.) is a fruit tree species native to the lowlands of Mexico, Central America and South America (CROAT, 1974).In Brazil, it is found mainly in the North and Northeast.Its fruits are used in the preparation of fruit pulps, ice creams, nectars, jams and juices (SACRAMENTO; SOUZA, 2000).This work reports the results of the first survey of mites associated with hog plum trees in the state of Amapá, in the eastern Brazilian Amazon.Two experimental areas were delimited in a property within the Matapi Agricultural Colony (00 º 36'13,3" N; 51 º 27'19,5" W), in the municipality of Porto Grande: Area 1commercial hog plum orchard (1.600 trees, four years old); and Area 2 -hog plum trees occurring spontaneously in a dry-land forest adjacent to the orchard.Samples of hog plum leaves were taken every two weeks between November 2010 and February 2011.A total of 70 samples were collected from Area 1 and 50 samples from Area 2. Each sample consisted of leaves collected from 10 trees at random (3 leaves/plant).The samples (packed in paper bags) were taken to the Laboratório de Entomologia at Embrapa Amapá, where the material was screened as per Mineiro et al. (2009).The acarids were mounted in Hoyer's solution on permanent slides, for subsequent identification.
A total of 28.710 mites were collected: 18,208 from Area 1 and 10,502 from Area 2. Altogether, 32 species of mites from 17 families were identified.A total of 21 species of mites were collected from Area 1 and 29 species from Area 2 (Table 1).Davisella spondias Reis & Navia (Diptilomiopidae) was the most abundant species in both areas (93.9% of specimens from Area 1 and 91.3% from Area 2).This mite species was recently described by Reis & Navia (2010) and reported only in S. mombin in Northeastern Brazil.It is possible that D. spondias be monophagous, feeding only on this plant species, which could explain the high abundance of this mite.However, further studies are needed to corroborate this hypothesis.Davisella spondias was more abundant in the orchard, probably due to the availability of food resources and uniformity of the area.In both areas, Phytoseiidae was the family of predatory mites with the highest richness of species (eight species in Area 1; and 11 in Area 2).Iphiseiodes zuluagai Denmark & Muma was obtained in both areas (82 specimens in Area 1 and 28 in Area 2).The availability of food resources enables an increase in the richness of phytoseiids mites.

Specimens of Tenuipalpus uvae De Leon
were collected in both areas, with greater abundance in Area 2. This species was reported for the first time in Brazil only recently, in the states of Amapá and Pernambuco (JLC Mineiro, personal communication).In Costa Rica, Salas and Ochoa (1986) reported T. uvae causing fine cracks on the epidermis of hog plum fruits (affecting their quality and commercial worth), as well as a uniform yellowing of the terminal leaves.Probably the population of T. uvae was bounded by D. spondias.However, the relationship between these mites species should be further investigated.
Given the richness of species found in association with hog plum trees in this preliminary survey conducted in the state of Amapá -and abundance of D. spondias and the presence of T. uvae, a harmful species -, we suggest the completion of additional, more deeply systematized surveys, both in areas where hog plum is spontaneously found and in cultivated orchards.

Table 1 .
Mite species collected on hog plum trees in Porto Grande, Amapá (November 2010 to February 2011).