Copidognathus stevcici Bartsch, 1976

Chatterjee, Tapas, 2021, A checklist of halacarid mites (Acari: Halacaridae) associated with decapod crustaceans (Arthropoda, Crustacea, Decapoda), Persian Journal of Acarology 10 (2), pp. 155-166 : 158

Copidognathus stevcici Bartsch, 1976

Records associated with decapod crustaceans – This species was reported between Maja squinado eggs in Adriatic Sea ( Bartsch 1976b). This species was reported walking on the eggs of Maja squinado collected at Plymoth, England, UK ( Green and MacQuitty 1987). Green and MacQuitty (1987) also reported this species in the ‘Michael Collection at the British Museum Natural History’ and collection containing label ‘Portgwarra, spider crab’. This species was also found associated with adult females of the spider crabs Maja brachydactyla and M. squinado under laboratory conditions; mites were observed alive on their host for extended periods and direct evidence of feeding on crab's eggs was also provided ( Guerao et al. 2011).

Remarks – Guerao et al. (2011) observed the feeding behaviour of C. stevcici on eggs; mites support palps on the surface of the egg and the rostrum passes through the chorion and vitelline membrane for sucking on the eggs obtained from an ovigerous female of M. brachydactyla ; it provides direct evidence of feeding on crab's eggs.