Plants of strawberry Fragaria x ananassa may present mechanisms of direct and indirect defenses against herbivores. Such defenses may influence behaviour and development of phythophagous mites and their natural enemies, thereby reducing herbivory rate. We tested the effect of pre-infestation of strawberry plants by Tetranychus urticae Koch on the development and reproduction of the mite species. Strawberry plants (cultivar IAC Campinas) were divided into two groups: plants without and plants with pre-infestation of T. urticae. The length of immature phases, the number of eggs per female and the survival of mites were not altered by the pre-infestation. These results may be associated to either the absence or low level of induced resistance of the cultivar IAC Campinas or perhaps the pre-infestation was insufficient to induce defenses. The reported resistance of this cultivar to T. urticae could be related to indirect defenses.
Fragaria x ananassa; two spotted spider mite; induced resistance
