Copidognathus gurui, Chatterjee & Pešić, 2014

Chatterjee, Tapas & Pešić, Vladimir, 2014, A new species of the genusCopidognathus (Acari, Halacaridae) from Zanzibar, Tanzania, Ecologica Montenegrina 1 (3), pp. 169-175 : 170-173

Copidognathus gurui sp. nov.

( Figs. 1­ 4)

Material examined. Holotype (female), paratype (female), and additional materials ­ two females used for SEM, Matemwe (05 o 52'S, 39 o 21'E) the east coast of Unguja, Zanzibar, Tanzania in coral rubble of Fungia ( Anthozoa, Scleractinia ), August 17 th 2004, coll. M Raes & H Gheerardyn.

Description

Female. Idiosoma 295­ 317 (holotype: 317) µm long. AD 104­ 111 (holotype: 106) µm long. Anterior half of AD joining with dorsal part of AE. AD with frontal process and three areolae. Anterior areola oblong; paired crescent shaped middle areolae with 18­ 20 rosette pores each. Paired ds 1 anterior to middle areolae on AD. Pair of gland pores lie near anterolateral margin of AD anterior to ds 1. Area between areolae comperises large sized panels (panels not subdivided). Posterior margin of AD with a ridge containing a row of panels, each panel subdivided comprising four to eight small shallow subpanels. OC 82­ 84 µm long, 51­ 56 µm width, length to width ratio about 1.6, each with two corneae, areolae with rosette pores medial to corneae and posterolateral to posterior cornea; gland pore lateral to posterior cornea adjacent to lateral margin of OC; pore canaliculus present adjacent to lateral margin of OC. Setae ds 2 located at anteromedial corner of OC. PD 173 – 193 (holotype: 193) µm long. PD with two middle and two lateral costae. Each middle costae about 16 µm wide: with one to two rosette pores (each rosette pore with prominent ostium and canaliculi in and around it) and with panels lateral to it (each panel subdivided comprising subpanels) ( Figs. 1D, 3E, F). Anterior part of middle costae and lateral costae joined together with panels (each panel with subpanels). Area between two middle costae three to six panels wide, panels not subdivided (devoid of subpanels). Setae ds 3 – ds 5 on PD. Gland pores lateral to middle costae on posterior part of PD. AE with three pairs of ventral setae and a pair of epimeral pores. Paired ventrolateral areolae between insertion of legs I and II, paired marginal areolae posterior to insertion of leg II. PE with three ventral and one dorsal seta. GA 150­ 153 (holotype: 151) µm long, GO 50­ 59 (holotype: 52) µm long. Distance between anterior end of GO and that of GA subequal to GO length. Paragenital areolae well developed. Three pairs of PGS present. In holotype anterior PGS 22 µm anterior to anterior end of GO; middle pair of PGS posterior to anterior margin of GO, 32 µm apart from lateral margin of GA; third pair near posterior side of GO. Pair of SGS located at the anterior end of genital sclerites .

Gnathosoma 83 ­ 93 µm long. Palp consisting of four segments. Tip of rostrum just passing distal end of P 3. P 1 and P 3 devoid of any seta. P 2 with one dorsal seta distally. P 4 with three long proximal seta and one minute distal seta. Proto and deutorostral seta situated at the tip of rostrum; tritorostral setae (long maxillary setae of rostrum) located at 0.35 of rostrum length from its tip. Gnathosomal base with a pair of setae (basirostral setae). Rostral sulcus long extends posteriorly just beyond the tritorostral seta.

Chaetotaxy of legs: trochanters I­IV, 1­ 1­ 1­ 0; basifemora I­IV, 2­ 2­ 2­ 2; telofemora I­IV, 5­ 5­ 3­ 3; genua I­IV, 4­ 4­ 3­ 3; tibiae I­IV, 7­ 7­ 5­ 5; tarsi I­IV (PAS excluded), 7­ 4­ 4­ 3. Telofemora III­IV with two dorsal setae and one ventral seta. Telofemur I swollen with well developed trilobed ventrolateral lamella. Tibia I with three ventral setae (one long, pointed ventral seta and two thick, smaller ventromedial setae). Tibia II with one long, pointed ventral seta and two thick, pectinate ventromedial setae. Tibia III with one thick, pectinate ventromedial seta. All setae of tibia IV smooth. Tibia I with two denticulate proximoventral processes (lamella) ( Fig. 1E). Tibia II with a feebly developed (not clear properly) proximoventral process. Tarsus I with three dorsal setae, one solenidion, three ventral setae and two eupathidial doublet PAS. Tarsus II with three dorsal setae, one solenidion; PAS obscured by specimen compression. Tarsus III with four dorsal setae (distance between two basidorsal setae a little less than height of the segment) and two PAS. Tarsus IV with three dorsal setae and two PAS. All legs with two lateral claws and one bidentate median claw. Lateral claws with accessory process dorsally. Lateral claws of tarsi II­IV with ventral pecten.

Etymology. The species is dedicated in honor of Prof. B. C. Guru, Utkal University, Bhubaneswar, Orissa, India, thesis advisor (in D. Sc.) of first author (TC).

Remarks. Copidognathus gurui sp. nov. is characterized by two crescent shaped middle areolae on anterior dorsal plate, ds 2 on anteromedian corner of OC, a swollen telofemur I with a trilobed ventrolateral lamella, tibia I with two denticulate proximoventral processes, tarsi III and IV with 4:3 dorsal setae, telofemora III and IV each with one ventral seta.

Present new species has some similarity with C. punctatissimus ( Gimbel, 1919) , C. dentatus Viets, 1940 , C. biscayneus Newell, 1947 , C. dentipes Bartsch, 1989 , C. eblingi Chatterjee, 1991 , C. jejuensis Chatterjee & Chang, 2004 and C. mumbaiensis Chatterjee & Chang, 2004 . C. tupinamborum Pepato & Tiago, 2005 ( Gimbel 1919; Newell 1947; Bartsch 1989; Chatterjee 1991; Chatterjee and Annapurna 2003, Chatterjee and Chang 2004a, b, 2006; Pepato and Tiago 2005).

C. punctatissimus has ds 2 located on anteromedial corner of OC as in C. gurui sp. nov. while in all of the other aforementioned species ds 2 are located in the membranous cuticular area between AD and OC. Copidognathus gurui sp. nov. differs from C. punctatissimus and all other species in having a well developed trilobed ventrolateral lamella on telofemur I.

Copidognathus mumbaiensis is characterised by the presence of a serrated lamella ventrolaterally on telofemur I instead of trilobed lamella.