Phytoseiid mites (Parasitiformes, Phytoseiidae) of “Mykhaylivs’ka tselina” branch of the Ukrainian Steppe Nature Reserve, NAS of Ukraine

Faunistical studies are a priority in protected areas because these ecosystems can be considered the richest and the least disturbed, and provide invaluable data for comparison. It is particularly important in the case of predatory animals, such as mites of the family Phytoseiidae. They are highly important in the ecosystems as the plant pest regulators. However, the data on phytoseiid mites of protected areas are scanty, especially these of the steppe zone of Ukraine. The present publication contributes to the ecological and faunistical studies of Phytoseiidae mites of plant associations in the Ukrainian Steppe Nature Reserve. Herein, the new data on the species composition and distribution of predatory phytoseiid mites of the reserve’s branch “Mykhaylivs’ka Tsylina” are given. The material was collected by authors in August, 2017. A total of 677 specimens were identified as belonging to 14 species of eight genera of Phytoseiidae. According to the ecological preferences, the mites represent three groups: herbabionts, arboreal mites and eurybionts. The most common species was Amblydromella pirianykae, according to occurrence index (with maximum index value of 41.29 %). This species also was the most prevalent by the number of collected specimens. The rarest species in the studied complex were Bawus subsoleiger, Neoseiulus bicaudus, and Typhlodromus rodovae. The value of occurrence index for those species was 0.65%. Other species were characterized by intermediate values of occurrence index. The domination structure of the studied species complex was characterized using Paliy-Kovnatsky index. The community structure was as follows: two eudominant and two dominant species, no subdominant species, and 10 secondary community members.