The following Pesticide Hazard Tricolour (PHT) alerts are based on the data in the tables below. An absence of an alert does not imply the substance has no implications for human health, biodiversity or the environment but just that we do not have the data to form a judgement. The alerts for Highly Hazardous Pesticides (HHPs) are based on applying the FAO/WHO (Type 1) and the PAN (Type II) criteria to PPDB data. Further details on the HHP indicators are given in the tables below. Neither the PHT nor the HHP hazard alerts take account of usage patterns or exposure, thus they do not represent risk.
PHT: Environmental fate
PHT: Ecotoxicity
PHT: Human health
Highly Hazardous Pesticide
Human health Low alert
GENERAL INFORMATION
Description
A soil-dwelling predatory mite used in agriculture and horticulture as a biological control agent for various soil-living pests
Example pests/issues controlled
Flies, thrips pupae, nematodes and other soil pests
Example applications
Agricultural and horticultural crops, particularly those in rich compost under cover
Efficacy & activity
-
Appearance and life cycle
Macrocheles robustulus is a tiny, teardrop-shaped predatory mite measuring approximately 0.6 to 0.8 mm in length. It has a glossy, yellowish-brown to dark reddish-brown body and a single, hardened dorsal shield that covers its entire back. It possesses long, highly active front legs that point forward like antennae, which it constantly waves to detect prey as it forages.
Most countries require a licence to be issued before non-native macro-organisms may be released as biocontrol agents
Herbicide Resistance Class (HRAC MoA class)
Not applicable
Herbicide Resistance Class (WSSA MoA class)
Not applicable
Insecticide Resistance Class (IRAC MoA class)
Not applicable
Fungicide Resistance Class (FRAC MOA class)
Not applicable
Examples of recorded resistance
-
Physical state
Living organisms
Commercial
Property
Value
Availability status
-
Introduction & key dates
-
Example manufacturers & suppliers of products using this active now or historically
Koppert Biologicals
Example products using this active
Formulation and application details
Products often contain all life stages of the mite in an inert, dry carrier
Commercial production
Commercial insectaries mass-produce Macrocheles robustulus using a highly dense, climate-controlled open-matrix rearing system. They are cultivated inside large bins layered with a porous, highly aerated organic substrate, under controlled conditions designed to achieve a rapid egg-to-adult lifecycle. To support explosive population growth without relying on expensive live crop pests, producers sustain the colonies on an abundant diet of alternative astigmatid food mites (such as Carpoglyphus lactis) or dipteran eggs. Once the colony achieves a high density containing overlapping generations of all life stages, the mites are mechanically blended with a fresh, loose-carrier substrate and a food source for distribution.
Impact on climate of production and use
According to environmental studies, insect farming can produce as little as 1–5 kg CO₂e per kg of insect biomass, depending on species, feed type, and energy sources used.
ENVIRONMENTAL FATE
Property
Value
Source; quality score; and other information
Interpretation
Solubility - In water at 20 °C at pH 7 (mg l⁻¹)
-
-
-
Solubility - In organic solvents at 20 °C (mg l⁻¹)
-
-
-
Melting point (°C)
-
-
-
Boiling point (°C)
-
-
-
Degradation point (°C)
-
-
-
Flashpoint (°C)
-
-
-
Octanol-water partition coefficient at pH 7, 20 °C
P
-
-
-
Log P
-
-
-
Fat solubility of residues
Solubility
-
-
-
Data type
-
-
-
Density (g ml⁻¹)
-
-
-
Dissociation constant pKa) at 25 °C
-
-
-
-
Vapour pressure at 20 °C (mPa)
-
-
-
Henry's law constant at 25 °C (Pa m³ mol⁻¹)
-
-
-
Volatilisation as max % of applied dose lost
From plant surface
-
-
-
From soil surface
-
-
-
Maximum UV-vis absorption L mol⁻¹ cm⁻¹
-
-
-
Surface tension (mN m⁻¹)
-
-
-
Degradation
Property
Value
Source; quality score; and other information
Interpretation
General biodegradability
-
Soil degradation (days)
DT₅₀ (typical)
-
-
-
DT₅₀ (lab at 20 °C)
-
-
-
DT₅₀ (field)
-
-
-
DT₉₀ (lab at 20 °C)
-
-
-
DT₉₀ (field)
-
-
-
DT₅₀ modelling endpoint
-
-
-
Note
-
Soil mineralisation
Aerobic (at 20 °C)
-
-
-
Anaerobic (at 20 °C)
-
-
Dissipation rate RL₅₀ (days) on plant matrix
Value
-
-
-
Note
-
Dissipation rate RL₅₀ (days) on and in plant matrix
Value
-
-
-
Note
-
Aqueous photolysis DT₅₀ (days) at pH 7
Value
-
-
-
Note
-
Aqueous hydrolysis DT₅₀ (days) at 20 °C and pH 7
Value
-
-
-
Note
-
Water-sediment DT₅₀ (days)
-
-
-
Water phase only DT₅₀ (days)
-
-
-
Sediment phase only DT₅₀ (days)
-
-
-
Air degradation
As this parameter is not normally measured directly, a surrogate measure is used: ‘Photochemical oxidative DT₅₀’. Where data is available, this can be found in the Fate Indices section below.
Decay in stored produce DT₅₀
-
Soil adsorption and mobility
Property
Value
Source; quality score; and other information
Interpretation
Linear
Kd (mL g⁻¹)
-
-
-
Koc (mL g⁻¹)
-
Notes and range
-
Freundlich
Kf (mL g⁻¹)
-
-
-
Kfoc (mL g⁻¹)
-
1/n
-
Notes and range
-
pH sensitivity
-
Known metabolites
None
ECOTOXICOLOGY
Terrestrial ecotoxicology
Property
Value
Source; quality score; and other information
Interpretation
Mammals - Acute oral LD₅₀ (mg kg⁻¹)
-
-
-
Mammals - Short Term Oral NOAEL (mg kg⁻¹ bw d⁻¹)
-
-
-
Mammals - Long Term (Chronic) Oral NOAEL (mg kg⁻¹ bw d⁻¹)
Tzilivakis, J., Lewis, K.A., Green, A. and Warner, D.J. (2026) A decade of growth and impact of the Pesticide Properties Database (PPDB). Human and Ecological Risk Assessment: An International Journal, 1–26. DOI: 10.1080/10807039.2026.2702066
Lewis, K.A., Tzilivakis, J., Warner, D. and Green, A. (2016) An international database for pesticide risk assessments and management. Human and Ecological Risk Assessment: An International Journal, 22(4), 1050-1064. DOI: 10.1080/10807039.2015.1133242
Your use of this website and its various databases is subject to the terms detailed in the University of Hertfordshire’s copyright and IPR statement that can be found at https://www.herts.ac.uk/about-us/legal.
In addition, your use of this website and its various databases is subject to the terms of this additional Copyright Statement and the database Conditions of use.
Unless explicitly stated otherwise, the content of this website and databases are owned and controlled by the University of Hertfordshire. Site content, including its selection and arrangement, is owned by the University of Hertfordshire and is protected by copyright and other laws.
Except as otherwise expressly permitted under copyright law or within the database Conditions of Use document, the content of this site may not be copied, reproduced, republished, downloaded, posted, broadcast or transmitted in any way without first obtaining the University of Hertfordshire’s written permission.
By using our databases the user is deemed to have agreed to comply with all of the terms and conditions as described above and within all relevant documentation.
Human health
