Pachylaelaps (Pachylaelaps) armiger Özbek & Mašán, 2018

Pachylaelaps (Pachylaelaps) armiger Özbek & Mašán, 2018: 486 .

(Figs 13–17)

Material examined. 7♀♀ from moss, 39°34’N 39°14’E, 1244 m a.s.l., 23 April 2023; 1♀ from litter and moss, 39°38’N 38°27’E, 1244 m a.s.l., 24 April 2023; 1♂ from soil and moss, 39°36’N 38°09’E, 1163 m a.s.l., 27 May 2023; 3♀♀ from soil and moss, 39°34’N 38°00’E, 1456 m a.s.l., 27 May 2023; 1♀ from litter of Juniperus sp., 39°36’N 38°49’E, 1312 m a.s.l., 27 May 2023; 1♀ from litter of Juniperus sp., 39°37’N 38°43’E, 1450 m a.s.l., 23 June 2023 —the Karasu Valley (Kemah, İliç).

Description. Male

Dorsum. Dorsal shield 512 long 265 wide at the level widest point (length/width 1.93), suboval and oblong, setae J4 about 40, J5 microsetae. Two pairs of posterolateral slit-like gland pores, (gdZ1 and gdS4) present and well separated from each other (in females, they relatively close). Ornamentation and dorsal chaetotaxy as for female.

Venter. Holoventral shield 452 long, 96 wide at the level coxae II, ornamented with reticulate pattern and bearing nine pairs of setae (plus three circum-anal setae around anus).

Gnathosomal structures: Epistome with wide, subtriangular and marginally serrate base, and central projection; projection long and narrow, smooth, with inconspicuous neck and bifurcate apex (Fig. 13). The movable digit of the chelicera is 62 long, featuring a subdistal tooth and a terminal hook (Fig. 14). The spermatodactyl 117 long, approximately 1.90 times the length of the movable digit, tapering towards the distal part (Fig. 15). The fixed digit has a subdistal tooth, a terminal hook, and a distinct pilus dentilis. Each palptibia bears a distinct distal projection (Fig. 16).

Leg II (Fig. 17). Tarsus with a spur-like seta p11; femur with a large, axe-shaped process; genu and tibia each with a distinct ventral process.

Remarks: Pachylaelaps (Pachylaelaps) armiger was first described from Türkiye by Özbek & Mašán (2018) based only on female specimens. In the present study, 15 females and one male were collected from the study area. Male specimen of the species was collected and examined for the first time in this study, and its description and illustrations are presented here. Additionally, another important finding was observed in the female specimens: while Özbek & Mašán (2018) reported a large posterolateral projection on trochanter III, this projection was absent in most of the newly collected female specimens, being present in only four of them.