Predatory mites (Acari: Phytoseiidae) first recorded on cultivated plants in Slovenia in the period 2012-2017

In the period 2012-2017 we investigated the occurrence of indigenous species of predatory mites in different cultivated plants in Slovenia. In a comprehensive study we confirmed the occurrence of the following predatory mites: Amblyseius andersoni (Chant, 1957), Euseius finlandicus (Oudemans, 1915), Euseius gallicus (Kreiter & Tixier, 2009), Euseius stipulatus (Athias-Henriot, 1960), Kampimodromus abberans (Oudemans, 1930), Neoseiulus californicus (McGregor, 1954), Paraseiulus triporus (Chant & Shaul, 1982) and Phytoseius horridus (Ribaga, 1904). In the paper all seven species are presented, but for the field of biological control A. andersoni, E. gallicus and N. californicus are the most interesting species. The first two of them are already on the List of indigenous organisms for the purpose of biological control, while the third will be placed into it in the near future. All three of them have a great potential in biological control, since they can be found in different host plants.