Typhlodromus hellei Hassan, Afifi & Nawar

Abo-Shnaf, Reham I. A. & De, Gilberto J., 2014, Phytoseiid mites (Acari: Phytoseiidae) from Egypt, with new records, descriptions of new species, and a key to species, Zootaxa 3865 (1), pp. 1-71 : 56-57

Typhlodromus hellei Hassan, Afifi & Nawar

Typhlodromus hellei Hassan, Afifi & Nawar , in Hassan et al., 1986: 207.

Previous records from Egypt. Matrouh governorate ( Hassan et al., 1986).

Remarks. No additional specimens of this species were found in this study. It was originally described from the holotype female and an unstated number of paratypes collected in Marsa Matrouh, Matrouh governorate, Egypt. The original description was brief, with simplified illustrations and only measurements of the idiosoma. It does not allow a reliable identification of the genus to which it belongs. The shape of the calyx of the spermatheca, the number of idiosomal setae and their position (except the putative Z1 and R1) suggest that it could belong to Neoseiulella Muma. However , the positions of Z1 and R1 seem odd, the former excessively anterior and the latter excessively posterior to their usual positions. Alternatively, it could belong to Kuzinellus Wainstein , but in that case the positions of the putative z6 (the seta interpreted as Z 1 in the previous option) and R1 would also be odd, the former more posterior and the latter excessively posterior to their usual positions; in addition, in this case the cupshaped calyx would not be typical for the genus; according to Chant & McMurtry (2007), most species of this genus have the spermatheca with calyx elongate and tubular.