Blue oat mite

Constraint - Blue oat mite

Appearance

•  Newly hatched mites are pink with six pink legs

• Adults are blue/black with eight red legs and a small red spot on their backs

• Adult mites grow to about 1.2 mm and tend to feed independently

• There are three distinct species of blue oat mite

Symptoms

• Cause damage by feeding on leaves, leaf becomes silvered 

Damage

• Seedling plants may wilt and die from loss of sap

Control

Chemicals are the most common method of control against earth mites. However, all currently registered pesticides are only effective against the active stages of mites; they do not kill mite eggs. Also, in some circumstances, chemical control of adult blue oat mite may not be fully achieved, as one species of blue oat mite is naturally highly tolerant of pesticides. Pesticides used at or after sowing should be applied within three weeks of the first appearance of mites.

Links and Resources

DEPI VIC- Blue oat mite Introduction, identification, distribution, biology, lifecycle, behaviour and damage, and control. Published 2007.

I Spy Manual - Blue oat mite Page 121. Description, confused with/similar to, distribution, pest status and risk period, host range, damage, monitoring and sampling, and management options. Published 2012.

Insectopedia - Blue oat mite Description, biology, damage, weed hosts, control, and references. Published 2000.