Myrmozercon brachiatus ( Berlese, 1903 )

Joharchi, Omid, Babaeian, Esmaeil & Seeman, Owen D., 2015, Review of the genus Myrmozercon Berlese (Acari: Laelapidae), with description of a new species from Iran, Zootaxa 3955 (4), pp. 549-560 : 558

Myrmozercon brachiatus ( Berlese, 1903)

Myrmonyssus brachiatus Berlese, 1903: 17 .

Myrmonyssus brachiatus . — Berlese, 1904: 441.

Diagnosis. Body length 440; dorsal shield rounded, but eroded posteriorly, with approximately 30 pairs of dorsal setae, soft cuticle posterior to dorsal shield holotrichous; setae j6 only slightly shorter than other mid-dorsal setae, well separated; opisthonotum with two unpaired medial setae. Sternal shield entire, not eroded; setae st4 present. Genital shield narrowing abruptly, genital setae in soft cuticle flanking shield. Anal shield longer than wide. Peritreme reaching posterior margin of coxa II. Legs moderately short, legs I about two thirds length long of body, but longest pair of legs. Host: Messor capitatus (Latreille) .

Remarks. This species is a small member of Myrmozercon s. l., and is unique in having a genital shield that narrows abruptly and lacks the genital setae, which are in soft cuticle.