Abstract
Ph.D.
A number of aspects which might influence the buildup of
spider mites on cotton were investigated.
In contrast to their numbers on cotton treated with some of
the insecticides used to control Heliothis arrniaer
(Hübner) in field trials, the numbers of spider mites
remained very low in the unsprayed cotton. Predators such as
especially the pirate bug, Onus thniroborus (Hesse)
appear to play an important role in maintaining mites in
untreated plots at low population levels. Predator numbers
were significantly reduced by some of the insecticides used.
It is, however, not yet clear how the predator complex
as a whole affects mite numbers ...