Agauopsis obtusa Bartsch, 2005

Bartsch, I., 2015, The Agauopsis brevipalpus group (Acari: Halacaridae), descriptions of tropical Indo-West Pacific species, a key to all species, their geographical distribution and reflections on dispersal routes, Acarologia 55 (2), pp. 147-169 : 156-158

Agauopsis obtusa Bartsch, 2005

Agauopsis obtusa Bartsch 2005: 355-358 , figs 7A-J, 8A and B.

Short description — Length of female 450 µm, of males 419 – 422 µm. Integument within and outside porose areolae reticulated. AD 1.1 times longer than wide, plate slender compared to PD, width of PD 1.4-1.5 times that of AD. Transverse bar of Hshaped costae in anterior half of AD; ds-1 level with gland pores. OC 1.3-1.4 times longer than wide. Posterior cornea, glp and pc almost equal distanced, glp slightly anterior to middle of lateral margin. PD in both female and male slightly longer than wide (length:width 1.0-1.1 times). Medial costae distinctly diverging, anteriorly with about 12 polygons between costae. Pair of ds-4 level with posterior corner of OC. Pair of ds- 5 in lateral margin of medial costae of PD. Reticulum of ventral plates visible when focused on deeper integumental layers. Female GA slightly longer than wide, male GA somewhat wider than long. Longitudinal margins of female GA converging, anterior margin slightly arched. Anterior margin of male GA wide, almost truncate. Male with 51 pgs close around GO and a pair of outlying setae.

Gnathosoma — 1.8 times longer than wide, rostrum shorter than gnathosomal base. Length of P-2 2.7 times the height. P-4 short, about twice length of P-3, with single basal seta.

Both lateral and medial flank of telofemora pierced by canaliculi. Telofemora III and IV 2.5-2.6 times longer than high. Ventral seta in middle of these telofemora. Basal spines on telofemur I almost equal-sized. Tibia II with two ventral setae, ventromedial one bipectinate, ventral seta spiniform and dentate. Tibiae III and IV with pair of ventral spiniform and dentate setae. Tip of tarsus II with doubled medial pas, one of these setae long, one short. Claws on tarsi II to IV with accessory process and tines on both lateral and medial flank.

Remarks — Agauopsis obtusa has a wide PD but slender AD (width PD:AD 1.4-1.5:1), the transverse costae on the AD is in the anterior half of the plate, the ds-5 insert within the margins of the costae, the rostrum is shorter than the gnathosomal base, P-4 bears a single seta which is longer than this segment, the telofemora III and IV are slender, tibiae II to IV have two spiniform ventral setae each. The reduced number of setae on P-4 and tibia II is shared with A. dissimilis , but in that species the two setae on tibiae III and IV are slender, smooth, tapering. Only three individuals of each of these two species have been studied and the variability of characters is not known.

Distribution and biology — Eastern Indian Ocean, tropical Western Australia, Dampier. From turf on Avicennia pneumatophores ( Bartsch 2005).