Oviposition sites for Balaustium murorum (Acarina: Erythraeidae)

Abstract

The erythraeid mite, Balaustium murorum, crawls on house walls, gardens and rooftops of office buildings in Tokyo from spring to early summer. The mite causes the residents discomfort. In order to know the effective methods for controlling the mite, we researched its oviposition sites on the rooftop and ground. A large number of eggs were collected from the gap between the protecting wall and concrete floor of the building roof. Many eggs were also collected from narrow and deep cracks of old concrete walls on the ground. The eggs were laid in the cracks in groups. It seemed that the gaps and cracks of the walls were main oviposition sites for the mite.