Unguidispus Mahunka, 1970

Khaustov, Alexander A., 2014, A review of myrmecophilous mites of the family Microdispidae (Acari, Heterostigmatina) of Western Siberia, ZooKeys 454, pp. 13-28 : 14

Taxon classification Animalia Prostigmata Microdispidae

Genus Unguidispus Mahunka, 1970

Type species.

Unguidispus stammeri Mahunka, 1970, by original designation.

Diagnosis.

Female. Gnathosoma dorsally with 2 pairs of setae. Pharyngeal pumps 1 and 3 vestigial, pharyngeal pump 2 large, transversely striated. Prodorsum usually almost completely covered by tergite C. Cupules ia and ih small, round. Two pairs of pseudanal setae present (ps2 absent). Posterior margin of posterior sternal fig entire. Leg I distinctly shorter than leg II. Tibiotarsus with well-developed claw; eupathidia tc’-tc” situated on clear pinnaculum; setae s of tibiotarsus I present. Trochanter IV anterodorsally with short spine-like process.

The genus Unguidispus currently includes six species distributed in the Palaearctic region: Unguidispus stammeri , Unguidispus polyctenus (Sevastianov, 1969), Unguidispus contematosus Sevastianov, 1981, Unguidispus okumurai Kurosa, 1979, Unguidispus japonicus Kurosa, 1979, and Unguidispus lasii Kurosa, 1979. All species of the genus Unguidispus phoretic on ants of the genera Formica L. and Lasius Fabricius ( Hymenoptera : Formicinae), or inhabit their nests ( Hajiqanbar and Hosseininaveh 2014; Kurosa 1979).