First record of the carmine spider mite, tetranychus urticae, infesting withania somnifera in India

Abstract

During AprilJune 2010, red twospotted carmine spider mites Tetranychus urticae Koch (Trombidiformes: Tetranychidae) were found on aerial apical parts of Ashwagandha Withania somnifera (L.) Dunal (Solanales: Solanaceae) plants in the Amritsar District of Punjab Province in the North Indian plains. The mites fed on the leaves, making them shiny white in color, which gradually dried off and were later shed. The pest was identified as T. urticae. To best of our knowledge, this is the first record of this pest infesting W. somnifera in India. © This is an open access paper. We use the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license that permits unrestricted use, provided that the paper is properly attributed.