Résumé
The leaf surfaces of wild and cultivated plants worldwide provide billions of square meters of potential habitat and microhabitat for mites, but variations in their abiotic and biotic environments can pose extreme challenges. The phytoseiid mites (Acari: Phytoseiidae), an extremely species-rich group of mostly generalist predators, provide vital ecosystem services worth hundreds of millions of dollars yearly by suppressing phytophagous mites and insects in native and planted forests, field crops, green-houses and home gardens. In this study, the phytoseiid mites on the leaves and shoots of four species of common tree species - oak (Quercus cerris), poplar (Populus deltoides, P. nigra) and walnut (Juglans regia), were compared. The three data sets used were from three seasonal studies in Samsun Province, Turkiye, between 2018 and 2023. In total, 19 phytoseiid species in 13 genera were collected. Only Eusieus amissibilis was collected from all three tree genera. Reasons for the distinct differences in the phytoseiid complexes on the oak, two poplars and walnut, including leaf morphology, lifestyle, feeding behaviour and abiotic factors, are discussed. Global biodiversity, likely including many undescribed phytoseiid species, is being lost to habitat destruction and climate change, especially in the tropics. Urgent, integrated actions from the local scale to global initiatives are required in response.