New records of predatory mites (Acari: Phytoseiidae) from Ethiopia with redescription of female Graminaseius shwelei El-Banhawy & Knapp and the first description of its male

ABSTRACT

Despite their great importance in the biological control of phytophagous mites and insects, nothing is known with regard to the phytoseiid mite fauna in Ethiopia. In this paper, three species, Amblyseius chanioticus Papadoulis, Graminaseius shwelei El-Banhawy & Knapp and Neoseiulus scapilatus (van der Merwe) are reported for the first time from Ethiopia. Because the original description of G. shwelei was based on a single female specimen, this species is redescribed based on females to provide intraspecific variation and to improve its diagnosis. In addition, the male G. shwelei is described for the first time. Furthermore, short descriptions of A. chanioticus and N. scapilatus are also given.

KEYWORDS:

• Predatory mite
• fauna
• sub-Saharan Africa
• first record
• biological control

Acknowledgments

We thank Dr. Leonid B. Rybalov (A.N. Severtsov Institute of Ecology and Evolution, Moscow, Russia) for material collection.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The work was performed within the framework of the Joint Russian-Ethiopian Biological Expedition, financially supported by the Russian Academy of Sciences.