Notophthiracarus granpiedraensis, Niedbała, 2009

Niedbała, Wojciech, 2009, New species of ptyctimous mites (Acari, Oribatida) from Cuba, Journal of Natural History 43 (7 - 8), pp. 423-433 : 429

Notophthiracarus granpiedraensis sp. nov.

( Figure 4 )

Material examined

Holotype and one paratype: Cuba, Santiago , Gran Piedra, west slope, soil of montane forest, tree fern stand, 21 X 1981, leg. J. Rusek.

Measurements of holotype

Prodorsum: length 429, width 288, height 177, sensillus 152, setae: interlamellar 278, lamellar 22.8, rostral 15.2; notogaster: length 858, width 596, height 566, setae: c 1 174, c 2 119, c 3 40.5, h 1 215, ps 1 245; genitoaggenital plate 217X202, anoadanal plate 268X167.

Description

Colour, grey-brown. Surface of body covered with fine punctuation.

Prodorsum with strong median crista. Sigillar fields very long and narrow. Sensilli long and narrow, attenuate. Interlamellar and lamellar setae needle-shaped. Rostral setae minute. Exobothridial setae vestigial.

Notogaster with 15 pairs of strong, heterotrichous setae. Setae c 1, h 1, ps 1, ps 2 the longest, setae c 3, cp, d 2, h 3, ps 4 the shortest. Setae of row c remote from anterior border, setae c 2 and c 3 more than setae c 1. Four pairs of lyrifisseres ia, im, ip, ips present. Vestigial setae f 1 not visible.

Ventral region. Setae h of mentum longer than distance between them. Only eight pairs of genital setae present with formula: 5: 3. Anoadanal plates with rather short setae; anal setae flexible, longer than adanal; adanal setae situated near paraxial border of plate.

Chaetome of legs of ‘‘complete type’’, setae d of femora I slightly remote from distal end of article.

Etymology

The name of new species is derived from the locality of Gran Piedra from Cuba.

Comparison

The new species is easily distinguishable from its congeners by the presence of the following combination of characters: strong median crista of prodorsum, long, attenuate sensilli, minute rostral setae, heteritrichous notogastral setae, c 1 and h 1, ps 1, ps 2 longer than other setae, adanal setae inserted near paraxial border of plate.

Figures

Figure 4. Notophthiracarus granpiedraensis sp. nov. (holotype): (A) prodorsum, lateral view; (B) prodorsum, dorsal view; (C) opisthosoma, lateral view; (D) mentum of infracapitulum; (E) genitoaggenital plate; (F) anoadanal plate; (G) trochanter and femur of leg I.