Tip Top Bio-Control Technical Bulletin

Galendromus helveolus
Predatory Mite

Target Pest:
This predatory mite is well adapted to the Persea mite Oligonychus perseae. It can penetrate the dense protective webbing formed by the Persea mite to protect its eggs and it feeds on all stages of the pest.

Description:
This predator has five life stages; egg, larva, protonymph, deutonymph and adult. As with all arthropods (insects, mites) their rate in increase is dependent on the temperature. It completes a generation in one to two weeks depending on the average temperature (12.6 days at 64° F, 4.8 days at 90° F.). It lays about two eggs per day for two weeks and it lives about 30 days. It occurs naturally in Central America and Florida, on many plants including Citrus and Avocado. It feeds on a variety of pest mites including the Avocado Brown Mite, the Six Spotted Mite and the Persea Mite.

Release Rates:
Releases of Helveolus can be made when the Persea mite is present and laying eggs. We suggest releasing 5,000/acre. Approximately 100 predators should be placed on each tree in the grove. Place a small paper bag, envelope or french fry bags around a cluster of several leaves at the end of a branch and staple or paper clip the bag to the leaves. Place the predators in the bag. The predators crawl onto the leaves and begin feeding on the Persea mite.

Product Information:
The predators are usually shipped in 15 dram plastic vials containing approximately 2 tablespoons of corn cob meal, a small amount of host mite eggs (food for predators) and approximately 1,000 active predators plus predator eggs.

Strategic Considerations:
Avoid using pesticides one week prior to and one week after releasing the predators. The Helveolus will tolerate aerial treatments of Omite reasonably well, once they become established. Ground treatments of pesticides that completely cover all the leaves on the tree will probably cause substantial mortality of the predator.