Ololaelaps caucasicus Bregetova & Koroleva, 1964

Joharchi, Omid, Stanyukovich, Maria K., Asyamova, Olga S., Döker, Ismail & Tolstikov, Andrei V., 2022, Review of some mites of the genus Ololaelaps Berlese (Acari, Laelapidae) in Russia with description of a new species, Zootaxa 5138 (4), pp. 464-480 : 471-472

Ololaelaps caucasicus Bregetova & Koroleva, 1964

Figures 26–30 .

Ololaelaps caucasicus Bregetova & Koroleva, 1964: 73 .

Ololaelaps caucasicus . — Bregetova, 1977: 539; Beaulieu et al., 2019: 4. Specimens examined. Lectotype (here designated), female, Russia, Dagestan, vicinity of Kizlyar, oleaster thickets ( Elaeagnus ), Reitblat coll. in leaf litter, 29 March 1959. Paralectotypes, four females, Armenia, Yerevan, Mironova coll. in the litter under ash tree in the central park, 19 May 1960.

Remarks. Ololaelaps caucasicus was described from former Soviet Union ( Bregetova & Koroleva, 1964) where it was found from oleaster thickets and litter under ash tree in Russia and Armenia, respectively. Bregetova & Koroleva (1964) had designated syntypes for O. caucasicus ; in this study, a lectotype is chosen from among the examined syntypes. The lectotype is necessary to stabilise the distinction between O. caucasicus and the other species discussed here. The species has never been recorded again after its original description. We herein provide the following additional morphological information to complement the original description of Bregetova & Koroleva (1964) by examining type series specimens, all these observations were made on all five specimens examined, unless specified: (1) dorsal shield essentially smooth, without reticulation (i.e. not reticulate, but completely micropunctate) over whole surface except ventrolateral margins (epipleura) which are relatively well extended ventrally and with lineate-reticulate ornamentation, cells narrow and oriented mostly longitudinally or diagonally ( Figs 26, 29 ), length of dorsal setae decreasing from anterior to posterior, in one specimen a supernumerary seta Jx present between J -series (this feature is difficult to discern in the other four specimens due to bad conditions of slides); (2) metasternal setae st4 and metasternal poroids located on soft cuticle in one specimen examined ( Fig. 27 ), but this feature is difficult to discern in the other four specimens due to bad condition of slides; (3) posterior margin of sternal shield straight ( Figs 26, 27 ); (4) metapodal elements partly fused to hologastric shield, shield ornamented by transversally elongated cells and bearing five pairs of pre-anal setae (Jv1–3, Zv1–2) in addition to st5 ( Figs 26, 29 ); (5) hypostomal groove with six transverse rows of denticles, each row with 4–7 relatively large denticles, groove wider anteriorly, progressively narrowing from anterior to posterior ( Fig. 28 ); (6) the pretarsal paradactyli on legs II–IV not elongated, with tips not reaching beyond claws ( Fig. 30 ); (7) insemination structures not discernible. Supplementary measurements (n=2): (1) lengths of dorsal setae decreasing from anterior to posterior, most of podonotal setae 55–64 and opisthonotal setae 25–45; (2) sternal shield length 113–115, maximum width 200–229, between coxae II 113–117; (3) hologastric shield 357–408 long (4) sternal setae (st1–st4) 55–59, metasternal setae st5 and pre-anal setae (JV1–3, ZV1–2) 52–58; (5) legs: II (356–375), III (380–388) I and IV (470–500). Ololaelaps caucasicus appears to be most similar to O. ussuriensis , and is distniguished mostly by the larger number of deutosternal denticles, longer dorsal setae and the narrower (compressed) cells of the epipleura (compare Figs 26, 29 vs Figs 43, 45 ).

Figures

FIGURES 26–30. DIC micrographs of Ololaelaps caucasicus Bregetova & Koroleva, 1964 (lectotype), female. 26, idiosoma in ventral view, showing ornamentation of the hologastric shield; 27, sternal shield; 28, subcapitulum; 29, details of peritrematal shield, metapodal elements partly fused to hologastric shield, showing ornamentation of epipleuron (ventrolateral portion of dorsal shield); 30, tarsus IV, pretarsal paradactyli (p.p).

FIGURES 43–47. DIC micrographs of Ololaelaps ussuriensis Bregetova & Koroleva, 1964 (lectotype), female. 43, idiosoma in ventral view, showing ornamentation of the hologastric shield; 44, sternal shield; 45, details of peritrematal shield, metapodal elements partly fused to hologastric shield, showing ornamentation of epipleuron (ventrolateral portion of dorsal shield); 46, subcapitulum; 47, tarsus IV, pretarsal paradactyli (p.p).