Aceria angustifoliae Denizhan, Monfreda, Enrico

Denizhan, Evsel, Monfreda, Rosita, Lillo, Enrico De & Çobanoglu, Sultan, 2008, Two new species of eriophyoid mites (Acari: Eriophyoidea) associated with Elaeagnaceae in Turkey, Zootaxa 1698, pp. 41-48 : 44-47

Aceria angustifoliae Denizhan, Monfreda, Enrico de Lillo et Çobanoglu

Female (fig. 2). Body wormlike, 199 (180–255, n = 7), (41–49) thick, 50 (47–50) wide. Gnathosoma 18 (15– 19) projecting obliquely downwards, chelicerae 18 (16–21), seta d (5–7). Prodorsal shield 28 (24–28), 20 (20– 24) wide, semielliptical in anterior shape with a very short anteromedian lobe over gnathosoma base; shield provided with granules and some of them appear to be lined on the admedian fields. Tubercles sc are located on the rear shield margin 19 (16–19) apart, sc setae 25 (25–33). Foreleg 30 (27–30), tibia 6 (5–6), tarsus 7 (6– 8), ω 9 (8–10) distally just rounded, empodium simple, 6 (5–6), 5-rayed. Hindleg 28 (25–28), tibia 5 (4–5), tarsus 7 (6–8), ω 10 (8–10) distally just rounded, empodium simple, 5 (4–5) 5-rayed. Coxae with large granules; 1b setae 9 (6–9), 1b tubercles 9 (8–11) apart, 1a setae 29 (23–31), 1a tubercles 8 (7–10) apart, 2a setae 46 (40–52), 2a tubercles 19 (18–22) apart. Prosternal apodeme not evident.

Opisthosoma with 75 (73–82) annuli. Microtubercles mainly rounded, thinner in the posterior part, located close to the rear margins of the annuli. Setae c2 21 (19–29) on annulus 6 (6–8), d 40 (37–55) on annulus 21 (20–23); e 9 (5–9) on annulus 41 (38–44); f 28 (20–28) on annulus 71 (66–78). Last 4 (3–5) annuli with elongated and linear tubercles ventrally. Setae h2 65 (60–101) very thin at the apex, h1 9 (5–9). Genitalia 10 (6– 10), 18 (17–19) wide.

Female genital coverflap with 9 (9–13) striae; 3a 11 (10–11) apart, 16 (11–16).

Male. Similar to the female, 151 (102–207, n = 4), prodorsal shield 23 (21–24); sc tubercles 18 (18–19) apart, sc setae 20 (19–20); opisthosoma with 63–77 annuli. Granules on the prodorsal shield are a bit more numerous than on the female.

Host plant. Elaeagnus angustifolia L. (Fam. Elaeagnaceae ), Russian olive. This species is native to south-eastern Europe and Asia. This deciduous plant was purposely introduced to North America in the late 19th century as a nectar source for honey bees, for soil erosion control, and for reclamation reasons, and it is still utilized as a shade tree and for hedgerows. Unfortunately, in the past 50 years, Russian olive has started to spread from its original plantings and is now so widely established in North America to be declared noxious in four U.S. states ( CABI, 2007). The presence of this mite can may be of interest in biological control strategies.

Habitus. The leaf lamina appeared to be distorted along the mid-rib, with deep or superficial evagination and invagination, folding both laminar side, and with a rough surface (fig. 3). The scurfy hairs on the leaf surface appear more marked on the deformed surface than on the healthy one, probably due to the lamina distortion.

Type locality. Kurtuluş Parkı, Ankara, Turkey, 852 m elev.; 39°51'43N, 32°43'58E.

Type material. Holotype female circled with black ink among 3 females on one slide, 21st of July 2005, code # 2874; Paratypes - 8 slides prepared from material collected in the same locality on the same date, containing 8 females, 5 males and 1 nymph. Collected by E. Denizhan.

Etymology. The specific designation is from the specific name of the host plant.

Other materials. Dried, preserved stems and leaves, from which the above specimens were collected and mounted on slides, are in the senior author’s (ED) collection and some are deposited in the Department of Plant Protection, Agricultural Faculty, University of Ankara, Turkey. Additional plant samples from the same host have been collected in Turkey, at Goreme, on 27th of June, 2005, by M. Cristofaro ( ENEA, C.R. Casaccia, BIOTEC-SIC, Rome, Italy), at Goreme, on 4th of June, 2006, at about 5 km E from Urgup, on 4th of June, 2006, and at Nidge, on 13th of June, 2006, by C. Tronci ( BBCA, Rome, Italy).

Remarks. The species here described displays some characters in common with A. eleagnicola Farkas, 1963 , which differs mainly by the pattern of the prodorsal shield which is composed of median and admedian lines. Minor differences regards the ratio between width and length of the prodorsal shield and coxal ornamentations. These differences were also present in specimens collected by Dr. Ripka in Budapest, Hungary, close to Dabas (type locality of A. eleagnicola ). Also, Aceria shepherdiae Keifer, 1963 , differs by having granules on the prodorsal shield pattern, median, admedian and submedian lines, and large and evident microtubercles on the annuli.

Concerning the slide mounting practice of eriophyoids, a particular note needs to be added to the description of this species. Pictures of specimens in figures 4 and 5 have been taken from two samples collected in different Turkish localities and both were treated by means of Keifer’s media. These two specimens seem to show differences in their prodorsal shield pattern. Figure 4 suggests the presence of almost complete median and admedian lines, and light submedian lines, while figure 5 displays lined up granules. The morphometric study of the respective populations does not evidence any significant distinction between these samples. Differences can be observed in mite mounting: the specimen in figure 4 was mounted without using any fiber between coverslip and slide (fiber is used to avoid mite squashing and deforming), in contrast to the specimen in figure 5 where fiber was used. In figure 4, the line pattern can be considered an artefact caused by mounting without fibers, and therefore could lead to erroneous conclusions of mite identity. Of course, specimens in figures have been selected as an example and with the aim of showing as most as possible a critical passage in mite slide mounting.

Figures

FIGURES 4 – 5. Light micrographs of Aceria angustifoliae: 4) on the left, specimen slide mounted without fibers; 5) on the right, specimen slide mounted with fibers. Scale bar: 10 µm.