Abstract:

Olive, Olea europaea L., is an evergreen tree native to areas with Mediterranean climates. Its fruit and oil are key ingredients in the Mediterranean cuisine. Olive gall mite, Aceria oleae (Nalepa, 1900) (Acari: Eriophyidae) is a mite species that feeds on olive leaves, buds or flowers. This study was conducted to determine the population dynamics of A. oleae in generative organs of olive in Altınözü, Antakya and Samandağ Districts of Hatay between in April and October 2017 and 2018. The highest mite density was detected in Altınözü during the flowering period in 2017 and the budding period in 2018; and a second peak was seen during fruiting period for both years. A peak occurred in samples collected from Antakya for both years (in fruit stage, June 2017, and in budding stage, April 2018) but no prominent peak was noted Samandağ samples. A high rate of flower and fruit dropping was observed and this concurred with noticeable decreases in A. oleae population in Altınözü and Antakya Districts in both years. Three phytoseiid species, Typhlodromus ( Anthoseius) athenas Swirski & Ragusa, 1976 (44%), Typhlodromus ( Anthoseius) rapidus Wainstein & Arutunjan, 1968 (29%) and Typhlodromus ( Typhlodromus) athiasae Porath & Swirski, 1965 (26%) (Acari: Phytoseiidae) were detected in these orchards. It is thought they probably fed on A. oleae since their primary prey, tetranychid mites were unavailable. Correlation results showed that population sizes of A. oleae did not decrease significantly with temperature and humidity in 2017. In 2018, the population was negatively correlated with temperature, but no significant increase occurred as humidity rose.

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