Zelandothyadidae Cook, 1983

Gerecke, Reinhard, 2020, The early derivative water mites (Acari: Hydrachnidia, superfamilies Eylaoidea, Hydrachnoidea and Hydryphantoidea) of Madagascar, Zootaxa 4727 (1), pp. 1-77 : 7

Family Zelandothyadidae Cook, 1983

This is an enigmatic family combining character states partly bridging the taxonomic gap between Eylaoidea and Hydryphantoidea ( Gerecke et al. 2017). In addition to Zelandothyas and Australiothyas from the Australian region, it includes Malgasacarus , a genus endemic to Madagascar.

Malgasacarus rarus Tuzovskij et al., 2008

Fig. 1

The species is only known from two deutonymphs uncorrectly reported as females by Tuzovskij et al. (2008), see Gerecke et al. (2017), collected in the forests of the province of Fianarantsoa. For a better understanding of its morphology and taxonomic position, detection of adults and larvae is highly desirable.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Family Zelandothyadidae, genus Malgasacarus, M. rarus (a.–b. from Gerecke et al. 2017). a. frontal idiosoma; b. gnathosoma and palp; c. chelicera.