| Re: Web identification please
This webbing has been formed by the gorse spider mite, Tetranychus lintearius Dufour (Prostigmata:Tetranychidae). This species was described in France in 1832, but has since been recorded in the UK, Belgium, Italy, Portugal, Spain and Algeria.
Because it feeds almost exclusively on gorse (Known hosts: Ulex europaeus, Ulex nanus, Ulex parviflorus and Calicotome villosa) it has also been deliberately introduced into Hawaii and New Zealand as a biocontrol agent for previously introduced Ulex spp. that have become serious weed pests. |