Rafaphis Skorupski & Błaszak, 1997

Mašán, Peter & Halliday, Bruce, 2010, Review of the European genera of Eviphididae (Acari: Mesostigmata) and the species occurring in Slovakia 2585, Zootaxa 2585, pp. 1-122 : 74

Genus Rafaphis Skorupski & Błaszak

Rafaphis Skorupski & Błaszak, 1997: 136 . Type species Rafaphis microsternalis Skorupski & Błaszak, 1997 , by original designation.

Diagnosis (female). Dorsal idiosoma ( Fig. 135). Idiosoma dorso-ventrally flattened. Dorsal shield entire, ovoid, with well developed vertex, extensively expanded laterally, covering whole dorsum and wide lateral strips of ventral idiosoma, posterior margin capturing setae Jv5 and two pairs of R setae. Sculpture of shield partly micropunctate, with flat medial protuberance and fine reticulation on submarginal surface, ventral margins with dense transverse striation; with 30 pairs of setae, of which some submarginal setae may be positioned ventrally. Setae on dorsal shield uniform, needle-like, short and subequal in length: j1 moderately elongate, z1 minute, z 5 in unusual position anterior to j5. Pore-like structures small and subcircular, barely visible.

Ventral idiosoma ( Fig. 136). Presternal platelets present, suboval, small, paired, located close to base of tritosternum. Sternal shield located between coxae II, small, suboval in shape, wider anetriorly, surface delicately reticulated, with three pairs of setae and two pairs of conspicuous slit-like pores. Endopodal platelets II–III and III–IV separate, free in soft integument, small and irregular in shape. Metasternal platelets and pores absent, metasternal setae st4 inserted on soft integument. Epigynal shield suboval, larger than sternal shield, with fine marginal ornamentation on surface, with a pair of genital setae; genital pores placed in soft integument; post-genital sclerites absent. Anal shield subtriangular, wider than long, with three subequal circumanal setae. Exopodal platelets I–III absent; exopodals IV present, narrow and curved. Metapodal platelets elongate, curved. Peritrematal shields and peritremes strongly reduced and short, not fused to dorsal shield, anterior ends not reaching middle of coxae II. Lateral and opisthogastric integument simply striated, with three pairs of smooth setae (Jv1, Jv2, Zv2).

Gnathosoma . Palptarsus without paired macroeupathidia. Cheliceral segments as in Fig. 39, movable digit bidentate. Epistome with elongate trifurcate central projection and acuminate wing-like lateral elements, lateral elements smooth on anterior margin and finely serrate on distal lateral margin ( Fig. 38).

Legs. Setation of legs I-II-III-IV: coxae 2-2-2-1, trochanters 5-5-5-5, femora 11-11-6-6, genua 8-8-8-7 and tibiae 8-7-7-7 ( Table 3).

Notes on the genus. The chaetotaxy of legs I and II is atypical when comparing it with other genera of Eviphididae (see Table 3). All segments of leg I, and the tibia and genu of leg II show strongly reduced numbers of setae. Some characters of the idiosoma also exhibit remarkable features that are rare or unknown in other eviphidid genera, for example (1) expansion of the dorsal shield toward the ventral side; (2) capture of three pairs of postero-marginal setae by the dorsal shield; (3) size, shape and position of the sternal shield; (4) decreased number of setae on opisthogastric integument, with only three pairs of setae (Jv1, Jv2, Zv2); (5) reduction in length of peritremes and peritrematal shields; (6) relative position of dorsal shield setae j5 and z5, so the usual dorsal hexagon j5-z5-j6 is not present; (7) trifurcate central projection of the epistome. These features make the placement of Rafaphis in the family Eviphididae questionable. Rafaphis is presently a monotypic European genus.