Proctolaelaps regalis De Leon

Abo-Shnaf, Reham I. A. & De Moraes, Gilberto J., 2016, Proctolaelaps species (Acari: Mesostigmata: Melicharidae) from Egypt, with description of a new species and complementary descriptions of other five species, Zootaxa 4162 (3), pp. 479-503 : 498-500

Proctolaelaps regalis De Leon

( Figs 57–64 )

Proctolaelaps regalis De Leon, 1963: 197 .

Proctolaelaps regalis . — Karg, 1988: 453; Farrier & Hennessey, 1993: 46; Kamali et al., 2001: 9; Faraji et al., 2007: 111; Moraes et al., 2016: 224 .

Specimens examined. Holotype female from fallen fruit of Eugenia jambos L. (Alston); Myrtaceae , at Coral Gables, Florida, USA, June 5, 1956, collected by D. De Leon.

Adult female (holotype female measured)

Dorsum of idiosoma ( Fig. 57 ): dorsal shield 425 long and 264 wide at widest level. Podonotal region of the dorsal shield reticulate, with 20 pairs of setae (j4–j6, z1–z6, s1–s6, r2–r6) (right z1 missing, apparently represented only by an incipient setal base; right lyrifissure next to that seta apparently absent; left z2 missing), five pairs of distinguishable lyrifissures and four pairs of distinguishable pores. Opisthonotal region reticulate, with 21 pairs of setae (J1–J5, Z1–Z5, S1–S5, R1– R6), eight pairs of distinguishable lyrifissures and two pairs of distinguishable pores. Most dorsal shield setae of uniform length and shape and shorter than distance to respective subsequent setae, aciculate and smooth; seta Z5 longest. Unsclerotised lateral cuticle with three pairs of setae (UR1, UR4, UR5) (left UR4 and UR5 missing), all short and aciculate, and with a lyrifissure (Rp) between R4 and R5. Setal lengths: j4 26, j5 26, j6 27, z1 14, z2 22, z3 27, z4 32, z5 30, z6 26, s1 23, s2 24, s3 29, s4 34, s5 31, s6 30, r2 26, r3 32, r4 25, r5 29, r6 22, J1 16, J2 16, J3 16, J4 17, J5 11, Z1 27, Z2 27, Z3 29, Z4 27, Z5 58, S1 27, S2 28, S3 24, S4 26, S5 34, R1 18, R2 18, R3 18, R4 18, R5 18, R6 18, UR1 17, UR4 16, UR5 16.

Venter of idiosoma ( Figs 58–60 ): all setae aciculate and smooth. Base of tritosternum 17 long and 7 wide at medium level; laciniae 64 long, divided for about 56% of their total length. Presternal region with a pair of transversely elongate platelets followed by transverse striae. Sternal shield fused with anterior portion of endopodal plate, with a pair of pore (gst1) on distal end of extension between coxae I–II, reticulate; 100 long and 103 wide at level of st2, with three pairs of setae (st1–st3) and two pairs of lyrifissures. Posterior portion of endopodal plate represented by a large tri-radiate fragment between coxae III–IV. Metasternal plate oval, with the fourth sternal setae (st4) and lyrifissure iv3. Genital shield reticulate, 156 long, including hyaline flap; with posteriorly divergent lateral margins; posterior margin convex, 78 wide at posterior corners, bearing genital setae (st5); distance between genital setae 54; paragenital lyrifissures (iv5) on unsclerotised cuticle, posterolaterad of st5. Anal shield ovate, reticulate, 91 long and 65 wide at widest level, with circumanal setae and a pair of marginal pores posterolaterad of para-anal setae; anal opening not enlarged, 33 long including frame. Exopodal plate distinct from posterior margin of coxa IV to anterior margin of coxa II; with a pore near posterior end. Unsclerotised cuticle around anal shield with JV1–JV5, ZV1–ZV5, SV1, SV2, a pair of widely spaced, transversely elongate platelets posterolaterad of ZV1 and four pairs of lyrifissures. With two pairs of elongate metapodal plates, the anterior smaller. Setal lengths: st1 23, st2 24, st3 25, st4 24, st5 21, JV1 21, JV2 22, JV3 20, JV4 21, JV5 31, ZV1 17, ZV2 17, ZV3 17, ZV4 19, ZV5 19, SV1 16, SV2 16, para-anal 21 and post-anal 32.

Peritrematic plate and peritreme ( Figs 57, 60 ): peritrematic plate fused with dorsal shield at level of r2, but not fused posteriorly to exopodal plate; with a lyrifissure and a pore in region between coxae II–III (ip2, gp1), with two lyrifissures and a pore behind stigma (ip3, ip4, gp2). Peritreme extending forward to level of z1.

Spermatheca: not distinguishable.

Gnathosoma ( Figs 61–63 ): anteromedian region of epistome convex and denticulate. Cheliceral dorsal and antiaxial lyrifissures and dorsal seta distinct; hyaline rim on paraxial face of chelicerae with about nine teeth, at about same level as row of teeth on fixed digit. Fixed digit 33 long, with 19 teeth and large antiaxial membranous lobe; movable digit 32 long, with three teeth, the median distinctly larger. Hypostome with h1 about as thick as h2, h3 and sc. Deutosternum with eight transverse lines, delimited by subparallel lateral lines; first (most distal) line smooth; second to eighth lines respectively with 3, 3, 3, 3, 8, 12 and 2 denticles. Corniculi parallel to each other, distally pointed, about 24 long and 8 wide at the base. Setal lengths: h1 23, h2 18, h3 37 and sc 21; palp trochanter setae av 23 and pv 22.

Legs ( Fig. 64 ): pretarsi I–IV each with a pair of claws and pulvillus with three rounded lobules. Leg lengths: I, 416; II, 365; III, 355 and IV, 436. Leg chaetotaxy—genua: I—2 3/2 3/1 2; II—2 3/1 2/1 2; III—2 2/1 2/1 1; IV—2 2/1 3/0 1; tibiae: I—2 3/2 3/1 2; II—2 2/1 2/1 2; III—2 1/1 2/1 1; IV—2 1/1 3/1 2. Without distinct macrosetae.

Adult male: unknown.

Remarks. This species was originally described from the holotype female collected in Coral Gables, Florida, USA . It has not been reported from Egypt, but a complementary description is presented in this paper because of its similarity with the new species here described. The original description was brief, with only illustrations of dorsal and ventral shields and hypostome and some setal measurements. In addition to the original description, this species has also been reported from the USA by Muma (1975), Farrier & Hennessey (1993) and Childers & Ueckermann (2015), and from Iran by Ostovan & Kamali (1994) and Kamali et al. (2001). Additionally , specimens reported by Athias-Henriot (1959) from Algeria as P. (P.) bickleyi were re-identified by Halliday et al. (1998) as P. regalis . In none of these publications the unusual setation of the podonotal region of the dorsal shield was mentioned; the podonotal region of the dorsal shield of the male illustrated by Athias-Henriot (1959) is holotrichous (only r1 missing), differing from what was observed in this study for the holotype female of P. regalis . The holotype (only specimen mentioned in the original description of this species) could be an abnormal specimen. Further collection in the type locality of this species might help to elucidate that possibility. A species identified as P. regalis has been reported to be involved in horizontal transfer of Drosophila genes ( Houck et al., 1991; Houck, 1994).

Figures

FIGURES 57 – 64. Proctolaelaps regalis, holotype female: 57. Dorsum of idiosoma; 58. Tritosternum; 59. Venter of idiosoma; 60. Peritrematic and exopodal plates; 61. Epistome; 62. Chelicera; 63. Hypostome; 64. Leg IV.