The potential of the hatay population ofPhytoseiulus persimilis to control the carmine spider miteTetranychus cinnabarinus in strawberry in Silifke - Icel, Turkey

The Hatay population of the predatory mitePhytoseiulus persimilis Athias-Henriot was released into a commercial field of cv. ‘Chandler’ strawberries for the control ofTetranychus cinnabarinus Boisduval (Acari: Phytoseiidae: Tetranychidae) in 2000 and 2001 in Silifke county of Icel on the East Mediterranean coast of Turkey. In 2000, populations ofT. cinnabarinus were recorded in the field from the beginning of March in most plots, and increased gradually until mid-May.T. cinnabarinus populations declined to very low levels in all predator release plots approximately 2 weeks after reaching a peak. In general, predator populations rose linearly as the population densities of spider mites increased until mid-May.P. persimilis numbers peaked during the period 16–23 May. A similar scenario developed in 2001, but because of the relatively high number ofT. cinnabarinus in all plots at the beginning of the experiment, bothT. cinnabarinus andP. persimilis peaked almost one month earlier than in 2000. In both years, the Hatay population ofP. persimilis demonstrated good potential for the control ofT. cinnabarinus in field-grown strawberry in the Silifke region of Icel.