Lobohalacarus VIETS, 1939

Bartsch, I., 2013, Freshwater Halacarid Mites (Acari: Halacaridae) From Madagascar. New Records And The Description Of A New Species, Acarologia 53 (1), pp. 77-87 : 79-80

GENUS Lobohalacarus VIETS, 1939

Type species — Walterella weberi Romijn and Viets, 1924

Diagnosis (adults) — Idiosoma often with frontal spine. Dorsum with anterior and posterior dorsal plate, pair of ocular plates and seven pairs of idiosomatic setae. Gland pores inconspicuous. Ocular plate with two setae. Ventral plates fused to a shield. Area corresponding to anterior epimeral plate with three pairs of setae and one pair of epimeral pores, area of posterior epimeral plates with one dorsal, one marginal and one ventral seta. Female genitoanal plate with three to seven perigenital setae on either side of genital opening and one to three acetabula on each genital sclerite; no acetabula outside genital sclerites. Gnathosoma slen- der. Four-segmented palps attached laterally. Second palpal segment with single seta, third palpal segment with small spur, fourth palpal segment basally with three setae. Leg I slightly more robust than leg II. Telofemora and genua of legs almost equal in length. Genu and tibia I with ventral spurs. Tarsi I to IV with 4, 4, 3-4, 3(-4) dorsal and 3, 0-1, 0-1, 0-1(-2) ventral setae. Tarsus I with enlarged lateral fossa membrane. Solenidion on tarsus I in dorsolateral, on tarsus II in dorsomedial position. Paired claws distinct, central sclerite with dent-like process.

Remarks — Freshwater genus, regularly found in groundwater-fed habitats though also common in surface waters, even in coastal brackish water. Most of the presently known species are expected to be variants or subspecies of L. weberi (i.e. L. w. bucharensis Jankovskaja, 1967, L. w. bunurong Harvey, 1988, L. w. hummelincki Viets, 1940, L. w. processifer (Walter, 1919), L. w. gotoensis Imamura, 1970, L. w. tristanensis Bartsch, 1995). A second species of this genus is L. subterraneus Bartsch, 1995 .

Distribution — Cosmopolitan.