Tropilaelaps

Harmfulness rating

HARMFUL | NOT HARMFUL | UNCERTAIN

parasite; feeds on hemolymph of developing bees inside capped brood cells

Name

Tropilaelaps Delfinado and Baker, 1961

Taxonomy

Superorder Parasitiformes » Order Mesostigmata » Suborder Monogynaspida » Hyporder Dermanyssiae » Family Laelapidae » Genus Tropilaelaps

Type species

Tropilaelaps clareae Delfinado and Baker, 1961

Common names

Asian bee mite

Diagnosis

Female: Gnathosomal subcapitulumsubcapitulum:
Ventral faces of the fused palpcoxae.
hidden from above by anterior body (Figs. 1, 2, 3). CorniculiCorniculus:
Paired, horn-like process (sometimes toothed, bifurcate, trifurcate, spine-like, spatulate, or membranous) on the subcapitulum of parasitiform mites. These processes usually support the salivary styli. If toothed could be confused with a rutellum, a possibly homologous structure in Acariformes and Opilioacarida.
weakly sclerotized, inconspicuous (Fig. 3). Dorsal idiosomaidiosoma:
Body not including the gnathosoma.
and ventral opisthosomaopisthosoma:
Body division posterior to legs IV; usually there is no distinct boundary delimiting this part of idiosoma.
hypertrichoushypertrichous:
With many irregularly arranged setae.
(Figs. 1, 2). Epigynal shieldepigynal shield:
A shield protecting the female genital opening. Well-developed in Mesostigmata. Also known as epigynial shield.
greatly elongated (Fig. 2). Anal shieldanal shield:
In Mesostigmata, a ventral shield bearing the anal opening and circumanal setae (adanal or postanal setae), but without any ventral setae or pores (lyrifissures) on it. If ventral setae are present on shield than referred to as a ventrianal shield.
extends anteriorly, adjacent to epigynal shieldepigynal shield:
A shield protecting the female genital opening. Well-developed in Mesostigmata. Also known as epigynial shield.
.

Species identification

Diagnostic morphological descriptions of species, along with DNA sequence data, are given in Anderson and Morgan, 2007Anderson and Morgan, 2007:
Anderson, D. L. amp; M. J. Morgan. 2007. Genetic and morphological variation of bee-parasitic Tropilaelaps mites (Acari: Laelapidae): new and re-defined species. Experimental and Applied Acarology.43: 1-24..

Distribution

Tropical regions of Asia (Southern and Southeastern Asia). One record is from Kenya.

Bee hosts

honey bees (Apis)

Host association level

permanentpermanent:
associated exclusively with bees or their close relative, wasps; cannot live without these hosts

Host associations, feeding, and dispersal

• All stages live in beehives inside capped brood cells, where they parasitize developing bees by feeding on their hemolymph.
• Mite females disperse on adult bees and are non-feeding during phoresyphoresy:
  Attaching to or boarding another organism (i.e., a host) for dispersal to new habitats. Can be distinguished from parasitism because feeding typically does not occur.
  .

Biology

All stages of Tropilaelaps are permanentpermanent:
associated exclusively with bees or their close relative, wasps; cannot live without these hosts
parasites of honey bee brood. Mites occur in beehives inside capped brood cells, parasitizing the developing bees by piercing their soft integument with cheliceraechelicera:
Anterior, paired appendage of the body. Primary organ for food acquisition, adapted for chewing, piercing, tearing, sucking, or filtering.
and feeding on the hemolymph. The foundress mite places three to four eggs on mature bee larvae (drones, workers, and queens) shortly before capping, and the progeny, usually a male (first to eclose) and several females feed only on bee brood. The entire life cycle takes about one week and the adults, including the foundress mite, emerge with the adult bee and search for new hosts. Mite females disperse on adult bees. They are non-feeding during phoresyphoresy:
Attaching to or boarding another organism (i.e., a host) for dispersal to new habitats. Can be distinguished from parasitism because feeding typically does not occur.
since they cannot pierce the integument of adult bee with their unspecialized cheliceraechelicera:
Anterior, paired appendage of the body. Primary organ for food acquisition, adapted for chewing, piercing, tearing, sucking, or filtering.
. Gravid female mites die within two days unless they deposit their mature eggs (Sammataro et al., 2000Sammataro et al., 2000:
Sammataro, D., U. Gerson amp; G. Needham. 2000. Parasitic mites of honey bees: life history, implications, and impact. Annual Review of Entomology. 45: 519-548.).

Tropilaelaps cannot live sustainably in temperate regions because winter prevents honey bees from producing brood continuously, hence starving the mites.