Dolichotetranychus zoysiae sp. nov. is described and illustrated from the lawngrasses, Zoysia tenuifolia Willd. (type host) and Z. matrella (L.) Merr. in Okinawa Island, Japan. D. zoysiae sp. nov. resembles D. summersi Pritchard and Baker, 1952, D. tenellae Mohanasundaram, 1983, and D. bakeri El-Enany and Soliman, 1987 in lacking the ventral pair of rostral setae. However, the new species differs from summersi in having 2 pairs of genital setae, from tenellae in having 2 pairs of anal setae, and from bakeri in the presence of 2 setae on the distal segment of palpus.

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The spider mite Tetranychus pueraricola is widely distributed throughout Japan and it is common on kudzu vine but not on crops. Because this species has the second highest r_m-value among tetranychid mites studied so far, there is a real possibility that T. pueraricola will get out of hand after invasion of agricultural crops. To better evaluate its potential severity as a pest, we examined the host range of five populations collected from kudzu vine. On leaf discs juvenile survival to adulthood was assessed, as well as egg production of young females over a period of five days. Out of 23 potential host plant species in 12 families tested, 70% or more larvae attained maturity and 15 or more eggs were subsequently laid by mites of all five populations on nine plantspecies (soybean, lima bean, kidney bean, kudzu vine, cowpea, spinach, apricot, rose and mulberry), whereas no or few larvae attained maturity on another four species (cucumber, tomato, chrysanthemum and Satsuma mandarin). On watermelon, strawberry and eggplant four of the five populations performed well. These results indicate that T. pueraricola has a broad potential host plant range, just like other polyphagous spider mite species, which are all serious pests. Its broad host range plus the second highest r_m-value among Tetranychus species, suggest that this species has the potential to become a serious pest on agricultural crops.

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Coconut (Cocos nucifera L.) is a major crop in tropical Asia. The coconut mite, Aceria guerreronis Keifer, was recently introduced to Sri Lanka and southern India where it is causing considerable damage to that crop. The objective of this study was to identify the phytoseiid mites in the main coconut growing areas where the pest has been reported in Sri Lanka and to determine plants on which phytoseiid predators of A. guerreronis could be found. Twenty species were found in a survey conducted in July 2003, 3 of which are new to science and are here described. They are Euseius ceylonicus Moraes and Lopes, n. sp., Euseius pauciventripilis Moraes and Lopes, n. sp. and Phytoseius calopogonium Moraes and Lopes, n. sp.. Five species were found on coconut plants, 3 of which, Amblyseius largoensis (Muma), Neoseiulus baraki (Athias-Henriot) and Neoseiulus paspalivorus (DeLeon), on fruits, in association with A. guerreronis. In addition to coconut, A. largoensis was found on 11 plant species, whereas N. baraki was also found on 2 plant species; N. paspalivorus was found only on coconut. The latter 2 phytoseiids were by far the most numerous in association with A. guerreronis.

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A new species of oribatid mite, Epidamaeus weigmanni is described from eastern part of Mongolia. In addition, four known species of Epidamaeus, E. aokii, E. angustirostratus, E. granulatus and E. mongolicus, previously known from central and southern parts of the country are discussed.

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Insectivorous pitcher plants have long been favored by many Japanese hobbyists. Some species of the family Sarraceniaceae, endemic to northern America, have been artificially hybridized for a considerable period in Japan. Three species of the genus Sarraceniopus (Histiostomatidae) have been recorded from the cylindrical or tube-like leaves containing dead and decomposing insects in the U.S. and Canada. Leaves collected from the Kyoto University Experimental Farm (Kyoto Prefecture), Atagawa Tropical and Alligator Garden (Shizuoka Prefecture) and a flower shop in Tsukuba (Ibaraki Prefecture) were investigated for Sarraceniopus mites in Japan. As a result, two species of the genus were collected: Sarraceniopus hughesi (Hunter & Hunter, 1964) was a new record in Japan and a new species, S. nipponensis sp. nov. is described here.

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Wrong:Leg IV with 3 macrosetae
Right:Leg IV with 2-3 macrosetae

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Wrong:Okiseius maritimus
Right:Okiseius maritimus

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Wrong:genua I and II
Right:genua I and III

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