Unduloribates Balogh, 1943

Behan-Pelletier, Valerie M. & Walter, David E., 2009, Unduloribates from North America (Acari, Oribatida, Unduloribatidae), Zootaxa 2294, pp. 47-61 : 48-50

Unduloribates Balogh, 1943

Type-species: Sphaerozetes (Tectoribates) undulatus Berlese, 1914: 129 Tectoribates undulatus Willmann 1951: 153

Unduloribates undulatus Balogh 1943: 39

Other included species:

Unduloribates hebes Aoki 1965: 298

Unduloribates medusa Piffl 1972: 270

Unduloribates brevisetosus Nübel-Reidelbach and Woas 1992: 99 Diagnosis

Species in this genus have the following unique combination of character states: adult with irregularly tuberculate, thick, blocky, birefringent cerotegument; prodorsum with pair of deep vertical incisions in rostral tectum, ending near seta ro; with large, broad lamellae, almost touching medially, extending anterior of rostrum; bothridium with internal ring-like thickenings; notogaster without octotaxic system; with lenticulus; with 10 pairs of notogastral setae; pteromorph without hinge; posterior notogastral tectum absent; palpal eupathidium acm attached to solenidion at least along distal third of length; axillary saccule of subcapitulum present; coxisternal setal formula 3-1-2-3, 3-1-3-3 or 3-2-7-7; 1 pair aggenital, 3 pairs of adanal and 2 pairs of anal setae; genital setae neotrichous or not, with 6 to 10 pairs; postanal porose area absent; immatures apheredermous, plicate; larva with 11, nymphs with 15 pairs of gastronotal setae; seta d absent from genua and tibiae in immatures and adults. Paraproctal atrichosy from larva to deutonymph.

Description

Adult. Color of mature adults dark brown. Notogaster and ventral plate with thick, blocky, birefringent cerotegument ( Figs. 5 , 8 ). Lenticulus present. Legs with weakly developed, tuberculate, non-birefringent cerotegument. All sclerotized integument microtuberculate, with convex polygonal pattern on notogaster ( Fig. 6 ). Dorsophragmata and pleurophragmata present. Prodorsum with large, broad lamellae, almost touching medially, extending anterior of rostrum ( Figs. 1 , 9 ). Rostrum broadly rounded ( Figs. 2 , 4 , 13 ). Deep vertical incisions present laterally on rostral tectum, ending near seta ro; oblique genal notch absent ( Figs. 3 , 14 ). Bothridium with internal ring-like thickenings. Porose areas Am and Ah present, Ad and Al not evident. Tutorium present with tutorial cusp ( Figs. 3 , 10 ). Pedotectum II covering part of acetabulum II. Discidium present between acetabula II and III, merging with circumpedal carina posteriorly and with short, tapered, tuberculate custodium anteriorly ( Figs. 2 , 4 ). Notogaster longer than wide; anterior margin undulating, concave posterior to bothridia, and strongly convex lateral to bothridia ( Figs. 1 , 6 ). Pteromorphs without hinge, tapered to point anteroventrally ( Fig. 4 ). Notogastral setation 10 pairs; octotaxic system absent. Five pairs of lyrifissures present. Epimeral setation 3-1-2-3, 3-1-3-3 or 3-2-7-7; 6 to 10 pairs genital setae, 1 pair aggenital, 3 pairs of adanal and 2 pairs of anal setae. Postanal porose area absent. Trägårdh’s organ present. Palp with normal 5 segments and tarsal lyrifissure; setal formula: 0-2-1-3-9(1); palpal eupathidium acm attached to solenidion at least along distal third of length ( Fig. 15 , arrow). Axillary saccule of subcapitulum present. Chelicera chelate-dentate with 2 slender, barbed setae ( Fig. 14 ). Rutellum pantelobasic ( Figs. 13–15 ). Legs heterotridactylous; claws with fine denticles dorsally ( Fig. 12 ). Femora I to IV and trochanters III and IV with porose areas ( Figs. 16, 18, 19). Famulus (e) rod-like, rounded distally ( Fig. 12 ). Seta d absent from tibiae I to IV and genua I to III. Solenidion ω2 present on tarsus II. Solenidia on tibiae and genua short, except φ 1 of tibia I flagellate. Tibia I without tubercle projecting over base of tarsus I.

Immatures. Apheredermous, plicate, without hysterosomal macrosclerites or excentrosclerites. Line of dehiscence extends to seta la ( Fig. 20 , arrow). Prodorsal porose regions present ( Fig. 20 ). Gastronotal setation unideficient; larva with 11 (h3 absent), nymphs with 15 pairs of setae (f1, absent). Gastronotal setae of c, d, and l series monomorphic in larva and nymphs ( Figs. 20, 21 ). Opisthonotal gland present in all instars. Coxisternal porose regions present in all nymphs. Porose regions surrounding opening of opisthonotal gland, positioned ventrolaterally, in all nymphs ( Fig. 20 ). Apodemato-acetabular tracheal system or porose homologues absent. Paraprocts atrichous in larva, protonymph and deutonymph. Cupule development normal. Bothridium, bothridial seta and seta in fully formed in all immatures. Bothridium cup-shaped. Seta d absent from tibiae I to IV and genua I to III. Setation of protonymphal leg IV normal: 0-0-0-0-7.

Remarks

Piffl (1972) suggested that the rostral incision found in Unduloribates is distinct from the genal notch of many poronotic brachypyline taxa because it is an incision of the rostral tectum. Although the genal notch as defined by Grandjean (1952, his fig. 2C) is an incision of the rostral tectum, a genal notch is oblique, whereas the incision of Unduloribates is vertical; like Piffl (1972) we consider it distinct.

Piffl (1972) did not illustrate or describe humerosejugal porose areas Am and Ah for Unduloribates medusa , and they have not been described for other species. However, these porose areas are visible in dissected lateral mounts or in young, weakly sclerotized adults of the species described below, and could have been easily overlooked in other species. Piffl (1972) beautifully illustrated components of the gnathosoma including the axillary saccule at the base of the palps. Piffl (1972) also illustrated the dorsal and ventral of the larva of U. medusa , and noted the absence of seta h3.

Figures

FIGURES 4 – 6. Unduloribates dianae sp. nov., scanning electron micrographs of adult females: 4, ventral aspect; 5, dorsal aspect; 6, notogaster with much of cerotegument removed. Scale bars: 100 µm.

FIGURES 7 – 12. Unduloribates dianae sp. nov., scanning electron micrographs; figures 7 - 10, 12 of adult females; 7, detail of bothridium and bothridial seta; 8, detail of blocky cerotegument on notogaster; 9, detail of prodorsum and anterior of notogaster; 10, prodorsum, lateral aspect; 11, egg in female hysterosoma; 12, tarsus I and anterior of tibia I. Scale bars: 7, 8, 11, 12, 10 µm; 9, 10, 20 µm.

FIGURES 1 – 3. Unduloribates dianae sp. nov., adult female: 1, dorsal aspect, dorsophragmata indicated by arrow; 2, ventral aspect (legs removed); 3, prodorsum, lateral aspect (gnathosoma, notogaster and legs removed). Scale bars: 100 µm.

FIGURES 13 – 15. Unduloribates dianae sp. nov., scanning electron micrographs of adult females; 13, gnathosoma, ventral aspect; 14, gnathosoma, anterior aspect; 15, pedipalp with lateral detail of gena and rutellum. Scale bars: 20 µm.

FIGURES 20 – 21. Unduloribates dianae sp. nov., immatures; 20, tritonymph, dorsal aspect, legs removed; 21, larva, dorsal aspect, legs removed. Scale bars: 50 µm.