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Tomato russet mite (Aculops lycopersici) Photo: Goldlocki · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source ↗

Tomato russet mite (Aculops lycopersici)

Tomato russet mite, Aculops lycopersici (Tryon, 1917) (Acari: Eriophyidae), is a minute, eriophyid mite that has emerged as the single most damaging pest of dryland summer tomato in the Madanapalle-Punganur-Mulakalacheruvu cluster of Annamayya district and adjoining Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh. It also affects tomato in Kolar, Chikkaballapur and Tumkur of Karnataka. Outbreaks routinely cause 30-80 percent yield loss in February-May rabi-summer tomato when conditions are hot and dry; the mite is the principal reason for the recent collapse of late-summer tomato area in Anantapur and Sri Sathya Sai districts.

Identification

The mite is microscopic (0.15-0.18 mm long, cylindrical, yellowish to translucent) and cannot be seen without a 20x hand lens. Damage symptoms appear before the mite is visible: lower leaves develop a bronze, russet or oily-brown discolouration on the lower surface; the stem develops a characteristic silvery sheen that turns bronze-russet as the population grows. Severely infested leaves curl upward, dry out and drop; the entire plant takes on a "scorched" or sunburnt appearance even under partial shading. Fruit at the top of the plant develops russeted brown corky patches that downgrade market value. Diagnosis is confirmed by 20x lens examination of stems and lower leaf surfaces showing tens to hundreds of mites per leaf.

Hosts and lifecycle

The russet mite is restricted to Solanaceae - tomato, potato, brinjal, capsicum, datura, pepper and a few weedy Solanum species. The mite overwinters or aestivates on volunteer Solanaceae and weeds. Females lay 20-50 eggs over a 30-day life span. The lifecycle from egg to adult is 6-10 days at 27-30 deg C, allowing extremely rapid population growth. The mite prefers hot, dry weather (28-35 deg C, RH below 60 percent) and direct sun; populations crash under sustained rain or cool weather. Spread within the field is by wind, insect carriers and movement of nursery seedlings.

Economic impact

The Madanapalle-Mulakalacheruvu cluster (Mulakalacheruvu Tomato Market) supplies summer tomato to Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Bengaluru terminal markets. February-May tomato crops are highly susceptible because of high temperature and low humidity, and russet mite damage is the single largest yield-loss factor in this season. Field surveys by ICAR-IIHR and KVK Madanapalle have documented 40-70 percent yield reduction in unmanaged fields; severely affected fields are uprooted before harvest. The mite has been spreading to peri-urban tomato around Tirupati, Anantapur and Kurnool over the past five years.

Management

  • Resistant/tolerant varieties: most commercial hybrids are susceptible; tolerance information is limited. Newer hybrids marketed for summer cultivation (see Tomato Variety Aryaman Seminis, Tomato Variety Sahoo) have not been formally tested for russet mite tolerance.
  • Cultural: avoid late-summer planting in known hotspot villages; rogue and destroy infested plants and Solanaceae weeds; do not plant tomato adjacent to old tomato or chilli plots; maintain field hygiene around nursery beds.
  • Biological: predatory mites Amblyseius spp. give partial suppression in greenhouse conditions but are difficult to establish in open-field summer crops; Neoseiulus baraki is being evaluated.
  • Chemical: prophylactic sprays at 30 and 45 DAS with abamectin 1.9 EC at 0.5 ml/L (most effective), spiromesifen 240 SC at 1 ml/L, sulphur 80 WP at 3 g/L or fenazaquin 10 EC at 1 ml/L. Rotate modes of action to delay resistance; high spray volume (700-1000 L/ha) and thorough underside coverage are essential because the mite hides on the abaxial leaf surface and stem. Spray nozzle pressure of 2-3 kg/cm2 and added wetting agent (Sandovit at 0.5 ml/L) improve uptake.
  • Integrated: combine cultural sanitation + early-warning monitoring with 20x lens + targeted miticide spray on observation of symptoms.

See also: Tomato Crop, Tomato Variety Aryaman Seminis, Tomato Variety Sahoo, Tomato Leaf Curl Virus, Tomato Early Late Blight, Mulakalacheruvu Tomato Market, Summer Tomato Cultivation.

Sources

  1. Pests of tomato and their management. ICAR-Indian Institute of Vegetable Research.
  2. Aculops lycopersici. CABI Compendium.
  3. Tomato pest management. ICAR-Indian Institute of Horticultural Research.