First records of Raoiella indica in Guadeloupe and in Trinidad and Tobago
Raoiella indica (Acari: Tenuipalpidae – EPPO Alert List) continues to spread within the Caribbean. It was recently reported from Martinique, St Lucia, Dominica and on the island of Trinidad (Trinidad and Tobago; pers. comm., 2006) mainly on palms and bananas. In 2006, surveys were conducted in Guadeloupe and showed that R. indica was present in large populations on coconut (Cocos nucifera), ornamental palms (Caryota mitis, Pritchardia pacifica, Ptychosperma macarthuri, Veitchia merrillii, Washingtonia robusta), various ornamentals (Alpinia purpurata, Etlingera elatior, Heliconia rostrata, Strelitzia reginae) and bananas (Musa sp.). In June 2006, the mite was also collected from coconut leaves at Rambaud, on the island of Saint Martin (belonging to Guadeloupe). As on the island of Réunion, the presence of predator mites (Amblyseius largoensis, Acari: Phytoseiidae) was often noted in Guadeloupe in association with R. indica.
Sources
Etienne J, Flechtmann CHW (2006) First record of Raoiella indica (Hirst, 1924) (Acari: Tenuipalpidae) in Guadeloupe and Saint Martin, West Indies. International Journal of Acalogy 32(3), 331-332.
Personal communication with Deoraj Lalchan-Vine, Trinidad and Tobago, 2006-05.