Acrotritia furca, Niedbała, Wojciech & Starý, Josef, 2014

Niedbała, Wojciech & Starý, Josef, 2014, New and little known species of ptyctimous mites (Acari, Oribatida) from Cameroon, Zootaxa 3889 (1), pp. 31-57 : 36

Acrotritia furca sp. nov.

( Fig. 2A–J )

Measurements of holotype. Prodorsum: length 273, height 106, width 197; prodorsal setae: sensillus 78, interlamellar (in) 142, lamellar (le) 83, rostral (ro) 61, exobothridial (ex) 10; notogaster: length 566, height 394, width 374; notogastral setae: c 1 104, h 1 101, ps 1 114; genitoaggenital plate 121×109, anoadanal plate 215×111.

Description. Colour yellow. Surface of body punctated.

Prodorsum with lateral carinae forked distally but lower branch is short and not reach the margin of prodorsum. Sensilli long, rod-like, covered with distinct spines in distal half. Dorsal setae long, erect, rigid, covered with distinct spines, exobothridial setae minute.

Notogaster with notogastral setae of medium length (c 1/ c 1- d 1 = 0.8) covered with small spines, notogastral setae c 1—3 remote from anterior notogastral margin, setae c 2 more than setae c 1, setae c 3 less than setae c 1.

Ventral region. Setae h of mentum longer than distance between their insertion points. Palps three segmented with chaetome: 2-2-8(1). Nine pairs of genital setae, with formula 7: 2; two pairs of aggenital setae situated longitudinally.

Legs. Chaetome of legs (without tarsi): I: 1-3-5(2)-5(1), II: 1-4-4(1)-4(1), III: 2-2-2(1)-3(1), IV: 2-1-2-2(1). Genua III with one seta less than in some other Acrotritia species (i. e. A. duplicata ( Grandjean, 1953) . Tarsi of legs I heterobidactylous, tarsi of legs II and III heterotridactylous, tarsi of legs IV monodactylous.

Material examined. Holotype and one paratype are deposited at DATE from locus typicus: North–West Province, Mt. Oku, about 12 km W of Kumbo, 4–5. V. 2006, latitude 06°13'17.64" N, longitude 10°30'13.26" E, altitude 2800 m, montane foggy forest, litter and soil sifting sample, leg V. Grebennikov, one paratype is deposited at ISB from the same locality.

Etymology. The specific epithet furca is derived from Latin for “a fork” and alludes to bifurcate distal end of lateral carinae of prodorsum.

Comparison and diagnosis. The new species is distinguishable from congeners by the presence of monodactylous tarsi I, heterobidactylous tarsi I and heterotridactylous tarsi II and III. Three species with similar shape of bifurcation of lateral carinae Acrotritia meristos ( Niedbała, 2003) , A. furcata ( Bayoumi et Mahunka, 1979) and A. penicillata ( Mahunka, 1982) have dilated, fusiform head of sensilli. Furthermore A. furcata and A. penicillata have body surface with network of polygonal structure and A. meristos has short and almost equal length of prodorsal, dorsal setae and small notogastral setae.

Figures

FIGURE 2 A – J. Acrotritia furca sp. nov. (holotype). A, prodorsum, lateral view; B, sensillus, dorsal view; C, sensillus lateral view; D, opisthosoma, lateral view; E, left genitoaggenital plate; F, mentum of subcapitulum; G, claw I; H, claw II; I, claw III; J, claw IV.