Atractides affinis, Szalay, 1946

Gerecke, Reinhard, 2003, Water mites of the genus Atractides Koch, 1837 (Acari: Parasitengona: Hygrobatidae) in the western Palaearctic region: a revision, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 138, pp. 141-378 : 249

ATRACTIDES AFFINIS ( SZALAY, 1946, NEC LUNDBLAD,

1927) = ATRACTIDES DRAGONENSIS K. VIETS, 1949

Megapus latipalpis affinis Szalay, 1946

preocc., A. latipalpis dragonensis nom. nov. K. Viets, 1949

Syn. to A. latipalpis ( Motaş & Tanasachi, 1946) : K. O. Viets, 1987

Type series: Missing. Locus typicus: Romania aus dem Grundwasser des Dragán-Tales (Valea Draganului, Kom. Bihar) 6.9.1942, 1 ♂ Leg. Dr. P. A. Chappuis .

Discussion: As the name ‘ affinis ’ was preoccupied by Lundblad (1927b), K. Viets (1949) introduced the new name ‘ dragonensis ’. Szalay stated that he was not certain whether there was sufficient evidence for introducing a ‘variety’ name for this single juvenile specimen from Romania. He found mainly size differences, most remarkably in the L of the palp (L P-1 20, P-2 60, P-3 40 P-4 82, P-5 32, total L 234 – in the type of A. latipalpis 387 mm). As mentioned in the description of A. latipalpis , there is much reason to doubt that the type of A. latipalpis really had such a long palp. Most specimens from Central Europe agree with the total L provided by Szalay rather than with the original description, but differ in proportions of the segments. If we compare measurements and drawings published by Szalay, we find strong disagreement (e.g. P-2/3 L ratio 1.50, in fig. 2c, 1.25). These contradictions make it difficult to trust the measurement data, although it is still possible to deduce a good agreement with the stem species from the figures. Some differences mentioned in the text are surely due to the juvenile age of the specimen in question: lower general dimensions, but relatively larger dorsal muscle attachment sclerites, and weak indentations of anterior and posterior margins of the genital field (exactly corresponding to the shape of the primary slerotization in A. latipalpis ). My observations confirm the synonymization of A. latipalpis dragonensis with the stem species A. latipalpis .