Population behavior of Raoiella indica Hirst in date palm orchard in the Mexicali Valley, Mexico
Keywords:
red palm mite, Mexicali, Phoenix dactilifera L.Abstract
Raoiella indica Hirst is considered an exotic and invasive species, recently detected in Mexicali. The aim of this research was to confirm its presence in crop areas and simultaneously evaluate its population behavior. So, biweekly sampling was conducted on 1 ha of date palm production, taking 30 pinnae per ha and examining them in the laboratory. This allowed for the collection and identification of mites and the correlation of their presence with climatic variables and crop phenology. R. indica is recorded in date palm fields in the Mexicali Valley mainly on the upper surface of the leaves. The species shows a significant relationship with crop phenology and average relative humidity and wind speed. The detection of R. indica in date palms in the Mexicali Valley confirms its ability to adapt to environmental conditions different from those previously reported, which increases the risk for a strategic crop in the region. Its association with climatic conditions and its increased abundance during the "fruit set and initiation" phase highlight the need to implement measures during this critical period to mitigate the potential impacts of this emerging pest.
Downloads
References
Alananbeh, K. M., Araj, S.-E., & Al Taweel, H. M. (2019). First record of Raoiella indica Hirst (Acari: Tenuipalpidae) in Jordan. International Journal of Acarology, 45(4), 233–234. http://www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:A44D3E74-A69C-488C-8638-1B7EB1177146
Barros, M.E.N., Lima, D.B., Mendes, J.A., Gondim Jr. M.G.C., & Da Silva Melo, J.W. (2020). The establishment of an invasive pest mite, Raoiella indica, affects mite abundance and diversity on coconut plants. Systematic and Applied Acarology, 25(5):881-894 https://doi.org/10.11158/saa.25.5.9
Etienne, J. & Fletchmann, C.H.W. (2004) First record of Raoiella indica (Hirst, 1924) (Acari: Tenuipalpidae) in Guadaloupe and Saint Martin, West Indies. International Journal of Acarology, 32, 331–332.
Flores-Galano, G., Rodríguez-Morell, H., Hernández-Turcas, R., Miranda-Cabrera, I., & Montoya-Ramos, A. Dinámica poblacional de Raoiella indica Hirst (Acari: Tenuipalpidae) en cocotero (Cocos nucifera L.) en Guantánamo, Cuba. Revista de Protección Vegetal, 32(1), 23-32. http://scielo.sld.cu/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1010-27522017000100003&lng=es&tlng=pt
García-Morales, R., Rodríguez, D., & López, A. (2022). Influence of microclimatic factors on mite pests in subtropical crops. Crop Protection, 152, 105820.
Global Invasive Species Database. (2025). Raoiella indica (coconut mite, coconut red mite, frond crimson mite, leaflet false spider mite, red date mite, red palm mite, scarlet mite). IUCN. https://www.iucngisd.org/gisd/search.php
Hernández, J., Pérez, F., & Castillo, M. (2021). Phenological synchronization of date palm and pest outbreaks: Implications for management. Journal of Applied Entomology, 145(9), 857–867. https://doi.org/10.1111/jen.12889
Joshi., M.J., Muralidharan, Ch.M., Sharma, K.M., Patel, P.S., & Varadharasu, P.R. (2023). Seasonal incidence of Raoiella indica Hirst (Acari: Tenuipalpidae) on different varieties of date palm in Kachchh region of Western India Persian J. Acarol., 2023, Vol. 12, No. 1, 91–100. https://doi.org/10.22073/pja.v12i1.76729
Kumar, V., Taylor, J. S., & Fernando, L. C. P. (2023). Ecological plasticity and host adaptation of the red palm mite Raoiella indica. Acarologia 63(2), 301–315. https://doi.org/10.24349/acarologia/2023
Peña, J. E., Childers, C. C., & Duncan, R. E. (2020). Biology and management of mites in tropical crops. Experimental and Applied Acarology, 82, 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10493-020-00506-4
Ramos-Lima, M.& Ramírez -Ortega, F. (2024). Reporte de Raoiella indica Hirst (Acari: Tenuipalpidae) en palma dátil en Baja California México. Mexican journal of technology and engineering 3(2):25-31 DOI:10.61767/mjte.003.2.2531
Secretaría de Agricultura y Desarrollo Rural (SADER). (2022, octubre 3). Adelantan agricultores de Baja California cosecha y empaque de dátil con buenas perspectivas. Gobierno de México. https://www.gob.mx/agricultura/prensa/adelantan-agricultores-de-baja-california-cosecha-y-empaque-de-datil-con-buenas-perspectivas?idiom=es
Servicio Nacional de Sanidad, Inocuidad y Calidad Agroalimentaria (SENASICA). (2020). Ácaro rojo de las palmas. https://www.gob.mx/senasica/documentos/acaro-rojo-de-las-palmas
Zona Norte Noticias (ZNN). (2025). Aumentó la producción de dátil en Valle de Mexicali. Zona Norte Noticias. https://zonanorte.mx/main/mozaico/nid/2656
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Latin American Journal of Agricultural Sciences - RLCA
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
The Latin American Journal of Agricultural Sciences (ISSN online: 2961-2764) applies the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license to the articles and other works we publish. Therefore, each manuscript submitted for publication by the journal will be processed under the CC BY license. This means that the manuscript author retains copyright to their published documents while agreeing that their article may be reused in whole or in part by anyone for any purpose, free of charge, including for commercial purposes. The use of this license is consistent with the open access policy of the journal, since this is the most open license considered "the gold standard" of open access.
