Applied Entomology and Zoology (2014) 49, 1-9

Keiko Oku (2014)
Sexual selection and mating behavior in spider mites of the genus Tetranychus (Acari: Tetranychidae)
Applied Entomology and Zoology 49 (1), 1-9
Abstract: As sexual selection is a coevolutionary process between males and females, various morphological and behavioral traits have evolved in each sex. In the tetranychid mites Tetranychus urticae Koch and T. kanzawai Kishida (Acari: Tetranychidae), males can mate repeatedly, whereas females normally accept only the first copulation for fertilization. Since early times, it had been reported that males engage in precopulatory mate guarding and combat against conspecifics for females to enhance their reproductive success. On the other hand, it was believed that females do not have opportunities to choose their mates. In the last 10 or so years, however, several new findings related to mating behavior were reported. Some of the findings reinforce our established knowledge, whereas some of them explode it. Here, I review the mating behavior of T. urticae and T. kanzawai by incorporating recent findings and then propose a new direction for future research.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Link to article at publishers website
Database assignments for author(s): Keiko Oku

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
general biology - morphology - evolution

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Tetranychus urticae
	Tetranychus kanzawai