Compactozetes duonodulus, Colloff, 2023

Colloff, Matthew J., 2023, The oribatid mite superfamily Eutegaeoidea (Acari, Oribatida), with descriptions of new taxa from Australia and New Caledonia and a re-assessment of genera and families, Zootaxa 5365 (1), pp. 1-93 : 62-63

Compactozetes duonodulus sp. nov.

( Fig. 32 )

Dimensions. Holotype female length 742 μm, breadth 606 μm. Length of paratype females: 732 and 707 μm, breadth 586 and 561 μm. Ratio of prodorsum to total length: 0.35.

Description of adult. Prodorsum: rostrum entirely covered by lamellae; rostral setae (ro) short, smooth, curved, only visible in ventral aspect. Lamellae very broad, anterior margin truncated and forming straight, transverse apex with two short blunt protuberances laterally and flat, triangular lateral lobes bearing setae le ( Fig. 32a ). Lamellae curving ventrally, fused with each other and rostrum, with large paired lateral foramina ( Fig. 32b ) corresponding with lighter, ovoid areas of cuticle on dorsal surface of lamellae; cuticle on ventral lamellar surface surrounding foramina with series of concentric whorls. Pedotectum I well-developed, lateral margins straight, projecting laterally well beyond margin of prodorsum and anteriorly as far as level of apices of median lamellar margins. Lamellar seta (le) relatively long, flagelliform apically. Interlamellar setae (in) short, setiform, smooth, close to median margins of lamellae. Bothridia fused with lamellae, projecting slightly beyond posterolateral lamellar margins. Bothridial seta long, slightly expanded apically, with few spines

Notogaster: ratio of length to breadth: 0.8; notogaster rounded, convex, smooth. Anterior lobe of humeral processes triangular with sharp apex and reticulate microsculpture, extending to level just anterior of bothridia; lateral margin of humeral process concave, with two shorter concavities and three small ovoid lobes posteriorly, each with sinuous microsculpture; humeral process terminating posteriorly at level of seta lp ( Fig. 32a ). Lyrifissures ia not visible. With nine pairs of notogastral setae in marginal position; l and h series short, slightly spiniform, same length as setae of p series, of which p 1 is visible in dorsal aspect.

Ventral aspect: subcapitulum acute, elongated; subcapitular setae h thin, longer than a and m, positioned close to anterior margin of mentum. Epimeral plates diffuse, broadly separated in midline, sub-rectangular to trapezoid, plates III much smaller than others; epimeral setation 3-1-3-2; setae relatively short, 4c slightly longer than others ( Fig. 32b ). Pedotectum I (pd I) large, with reticulate microsculpture and straight lateral margins, with sharply pointed apex, indented at its base; pd II relatively short, sub-rectangular, with median indentation; discidium broad, lobed, with blunt apex; perigenital carina and enantiophysis E4 present. Ventral plate ovoid, markedly broader than long, with marked indentation or ‘shoulder’ at lateral margin of circumpedal carina. Genital and anal plates separated by distance of half length of genital plates; genital plates 97 µm long, with six pairs of short setae aligned longitudinally, g 1 same length as others; three pairs of short adanal setae; lyrifissure iad in para-anal position, close to margin of anal plate. Anal plates lozenge-shaped, 136 µm long. Pre-anal organ (po) oval.

Etymology. The specific name, duo nodulus, is Latin for ‘two small knobs’, referring to the pair of small, blunt protuberances on the apices of the lamellae.

Type designation, material examined and locality data. Holotype female, ANIC accession no. 53-1079, paratypes: two females, ANIC accession no. 53-1080, ANIC 460 , litter, Nothofagus moorei rainforest, O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat, Lamington National Park , Queensland, 28°14'S, 153°08'E, 920 m., coll. R. J. Kohout, 21.iii.1973.

Diagnosis. Compactozetes duonodulus can be distinguished from other species in the genus by the following combination of characters: (1) the pair of small protuberances on the apices of the lamellae; (2) the long, pointed anterior lobe of the humeral process with concave lateral margins; (3) the three smaller humeral lobes, each with wavy microsculpture; (4) the notogastral setae of the l, h and p series short, subequal in length; (5) the cuticle around the foramina on the ventral aspect of the lamellae ornamented with a series of concentric whorls; (6) the long, thin point on pedotectum I with an invagination at its base; (7) the rectangular pedotectum II with a median indentation; (8) the presence of perigenital carinae and enantiophyses E4; (9) the genital setae are all in alignment longitudinally.

Remarks. Compactozetes duonodulus is a member of the ‘rotoruensis’ group. It is morphologically most similar to C. pirumorpha , as detailed in the remarks section for that species above.

Figures

FIGURE 32. Compactozetes duonodulus sp. nov., adult (a) dorsal aspect; (b) ventral aspect. Scale bar = 200 μm.