The spatio-temporal dynamics of Brevipalpus phoenicis infestation was quantified in two regions of the state of Bahia, Brazil (North Coast-NC and Recôncavo Baiano-RB). In each region, 10 orchards were evaluated monthly (from April 2008 to February 2011), in which 21 plants had inspected three fruits per plant with a magnifying lens (10x) to record the presence or absence of the mite. The average proportion of infested plants varied between 0.38 and 1.0. In fruits, the minimum proportion of infestation was 0.10 and maximum, of 0.73 for NC and 0.66 in the RB. The infestation process had a strong seasonal component with more infested units detected in spring or summer (Nemenyi, p <0.05). The spectral density analysis showed the occurrence of two cycles of infestation: one of 2 to 3 months, possibly related to the mite's biology and other larger, annual, arising from the interaction vector-host-environment. In both regions the spatial pattern of mite infestation within and between orchards was random. No symptoms of citrus leprosies were found in RB.
CiLV vector; spatial pattern; seasonality of infestation
