Feltria longipalpis ( Lundblad, 1941 )

Pesic, Vladimir & Panesar, Arne, 2008, Studies on water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) from the Himalayas, I. The water mite genus Feltria Koenike, with descriptions of eight new species, Zootaxa 1758, pp. 1-28 : 23-26

Feltria longipalpis ( Lundblad, 1941)

( Figs. 67–71 )

New records. IND' 94/7 (0/1/0), dissected and slide-mounted in Hoyer's fluid; IND' 93/12 (0/1/0); IND' 95/18 (0/1/0), dissected and slide-mounted in Hoyer's fluid.

Morphology. Female (from Darjeeling, in parentheses some measurements of the specimen from Kullu Valley): Idiosoma L/W 375 (406)/316 (328). Muscle attachments: sclerotized, prefr and postoc medially fused to a large plate, D-2, -3, -4 as paired plates, Dgl-4 medially fused to a large octangular plate, Dgl-6 and D-5 medially fused to form a large posterior plate ( Fig. 67 ).

Leg coxae are incorporated into 4 groups, very close to each other, and occupy more than half of the ventral body surface ( Fig. 68 ). Anterior coxae with poorly developed apodemes; glandularia Cxgl-2 located laterally on posterior margin of Cx-2; posterior groups of coxae with extensive secondary sclerotization, which extends to lateral and posterior margins of Cx-4. Genital field: pregen robust, halfmoon-shaped, genital plates anteriorly and medially with extensive secondary sclertization, L 100 (105), W 109 (113), with 26–33 (35–36) genital acetabula.

Shape and chaetotaxy of palp as in Figs. 69–70 ; P-2 with convex ventral margin, P-4 slender and elongated, P-4 ventral setae arranged close to each other, palp total L 234 (235), dL: P-1 20 (17), P-2 56 (56), P-3 33 (33), P-4 86 (88), P-5 39 (41); %L (in parentheses, given as % of total L): P-1 8.6 (7.2), P-2 23.9 (23.8), P- 3 14.1 (14.0), P-4 36.8 (37.5), P-5 16.7 (17.5); L P-2/P-4 ratio 0.65 (0.64). Length I-L-2-6: 33 (34), 33 (33), 53 (49), 55 (56), 64 (65); IV-L-6 with one long, slender ventral seta; L of IV-L-2-6: 44 (42), 59 (53), 74 (71), 89 (85), 83 (83).

Remarks. Due to the similar arrangement of the sclerotized muscle attachment plates and characteristic shape of the palp, the female specimens from India show a general conformity with descriptions given for the male of F. longipalpis (Lundblad) from Burma. The first description of F. longipalpis consisted of a few sentences only ( Lundblad 1941). In the more detailed description ( Lundblad 1967) he mentioned the similarity in the shape of the dorsal sclerotized muscle attachment plates with F. macroplata Imamura ( Japan) and F. m a c - roplata geometrica Habeeb (N America). The species has not been seen since the first description and the female is described here for the first time. However, as expected clear morphological differences can be observed between the male specimen from Burma and our female specimens. In the female a D-2 is not fused with D-3 (fused in male) and Dgl-5 is not fused with Dgl-4 (fused to a more rectangular plate in male).

Tuzovsky (1999) described Feltria (Feltriella) longipalpis Tuzovskij from Russia, however, this name is preoccupied by Feltria longipalpis (Lundblad) .

Habitat. Discovered in mosses in mountian streams.

Distribution. Burma, India (Darjeeling and Himachal Pradesh).

Figures

FIGURES 67 – 71. Feltria longipalpis (Lundblad), female, Darjeeling: 67 = idiosoma, dorsal view; 68 = idiosoma, ventral view; 69 = palp, lateral view; 70 = palp, medial view; 71 = I-L- 5 / 6. Scale Bars = 100 µm.