叶螨属的叶螨具有个体微小、可用于鉴定的形态特征少、表型可塑性强及存在生物型分化现象的特点，给传统的形态学鉴定带来了极大的困难。在过去的十几年，叶螨科内个别种的鉴定和描述一直存在争议。本研究通过形态学和分子生物学相结合的鉴定手段，依据雄性叶螨阳具的形态特征和核糖体转录间隔区（ITS）限制性内切酶片段长度多态性技术（RFLP），对不同寄主、地理区域的叶螨种类进行了鉴定。结果表明，两项技术的结合能够准确鉴定出卢氏叶螨Tetranychus ludeni，豆叶螨Tetranychus phaselus，神泽氏叶螨 Tetranychus kanzawai，二斑叶螨Tetranychus urticae，截形叶螨Tetranychus truncatus，皮氏叶螨Tetranychus piercei,为叶螨属的分类提供快速鉴定方法。

Tetranychus spider mites are so small that only a few morphological characteristics are useful for identification. Moreover, phenotypic plasticity and biological differentiation aggravate the situation when using traditional methods. Consequently, the identification of Tetranychus species has been controversial over the past few decades. We identified Tetranychus species from different hosts and geographic regions by combining morphological classification with RFLPPCR technologybased molecular identification. We show that the combination of these two methods can accurately identify T. ludeni, T. phaselus, T. kanzawai, T. urticae, T. truncatus, and T. piercei. This combined method provides a rapid and accurate means of identifying Tetranychus species.