Ceratoppia tofinoensis, Lindo, Zoe, 2011

Lindo, Zoe, 2011, Five new species of Ceratoppia (Acari: Oribatida: Peloppiidae) from western North America, Zootaxa 3036, pp. 1-25 : 11-14

Ceratoppia tofinoensis n. sp.

Material examined. Holotype: Adult female. Canada, British Columbia, Vancouver Island, Sydney Inlet, Clayoquot Sound (49°30’N, 126°17’W), 12 August 2007 (K. Jordan & Z. Lindo) from moss in canopy of Sitka spruce ( Picea sitchensis (Bong.) Carr. ); deposited in the CNC, type No. 23977. Paratypes: two with same data as holotype. Canada, British Columbia, Vancouver Island: Moyeha Watershed, Clayoquot Sound (49º24’N, 125º54’W), 14 August 2007 (K. Jordan), two from moss in canopy of Sitka spruce; Watta Watershed, Clayoquot Sound (49º27’N, 126º01’W), 15 August 2007 (K. Jordan), two from moss in canopy of Sitka spruce; Tranquil Watershed, Clayoquot Sound (49º12’N, 125º40’W), 18 August 2007 (K. Jordan), two from moss in canopy of Sitka spruce. USA, Oregon, Curry County: Sunshine Bar, Rogue River National Forest (42°42’N, 124°19’W), 12 July 1985 (I.M. Smith), three from moss on rocks; Alfred A. Loeb State Park (42°6’N, 124°11’W), 12 August 1985 (E.E. Lindquist), three from moss and lichens around trunks of tan-oak and willow. Paratypes deposited in the CNC, PFC, and ZLC.

Other material examined. Canada, British Columbia, Vancouver Island, Upper Walbran Valley (48°39’N, 124°35’W). USA, Washington, Quinault Rain Forest, Olympic National Forest (47°32’N, 123°40’W). Oregon, Oneonta Gorge, Mt. Hood National Forest (45°35’N, 122°4’W); Proxy Falls, Willamette National Forest (44°9’N, 121°55’W).

FIGURES 18–23. Ceratoppia tofinoensis n. sp., scanning electron microscope images of adult. 18, habitus, dorsal aspect, interlamellar setae (in), bothridial setae (bo), posterior setae (p1, p3); 19, habitus, ventral aspect, posterior setae (p3); 20, gnathosoma, ventral aspect, gnathosomal setae (a, m), hypostomal setae (h), and rostral tooth; 21, habitus, lateral aspect, bothridial setae (bo), lamellar setae (le), rostral setae (ro), and posterior setae (p1, p3); 22, prodorsum, lateral aspect, bothridial setae (bo), lamellar setae (le), rostral setae (ro), lateral carina (car), pedotectum I (PdI), and pedotectum II (PdII); 23, posterior notogaster, dorsal aspect, posterior notogastral setae (p1, p3). Scale bars = 300 µm (Figs. 18, 19, 21), 100 µm (Fig. 22), and 50 µm (Figs. 20, 23).

Etymology. The specific epithet refers to the town of Tofino within the Clayoquot Sound UNESCO Biosphere Reserve on Vancouver Island, Canada, the type locality of this species.

Diagnosis. Adult. Total length 530–580 µm, with character states of Peloppiidae ( Grandjean, 1954; as Ceratoppiidae ), and character states of Ceratoppia as described above. This species can be differentiated from other Ceratoppia by the presence of two pairs of very short posterior setae (p1, p3); single pair of hypostomal setae on mentum; interlamellar setae longer than lamellar cusps; lamellae not reaching the insertion of the rostral setae; wide medial rostral tooth.

Description. Adult. ( Figs. 16 –23)

Measurements: Mean total length: females (n = 3) 573 µm (range 570–580); males (n = 1) 530 µm ( Figs. 16– 17 ). Mean notogastral width: females (n = 3) 333 µm (range 320–380); males (n = 1) 310 µm.

Integument: Smooth to microtuberculate; cerotegument primarily present at dorsosejugal scissure and laterally on prodorsum. Prodorsum: Rostrum with wide medial tooth (Fig. 20), and about three lateral denticles. Seta ro 65–75 µm long, acuminate, heavily barbed, extending well beyond rostrum ( Fig. 16 , Figs. 21–22). Lamellae about 192 µm long to end of cusps, not reaching insertion of ro. Lamellar cusps about 70 µm long with short lateral denticle. Seta le about 97 µm long, thick, heavily barbed, tapering to a sharp point (Figs. 21–22). Seta in thick, heavily barbed, 216 µm long, extending anteriorly to or just beyond tips of lamellae ( Fig. 16 , Fig. 18). Mutual distance of setal pairs ro–ro, le–le, and in–in, about 46, 58, and 66 µm, respectively. Seta ex not observed; alveoli lateral of bothridial cups. Bothridial seta 135 µm long, with long barbs, almost brush–like (Fig. 18). Lateral aspect of prodorsum: Pedotectum I well developed, dentate anteriorly, with dorsal cusp, about 20 µm, triangular in shape (Fig. 22). Pedotectum II well developed, rounded anteriorly. Notogaster: Longer than wide, (ratio l:w = 1.11:1); hysterosoma often fattened with two to four eggs of considerable size (about 264 µm long). Notogastral setae reduced to alveoli, except for two pairs of posterior setae (Fig. 18, Fig. 23). Alveoli with porose areas ( Fig. 16 ). Minute depressions of notogaster in position of h1. Posterior notogastral setae p1, about 13 µm long (range 10–20, n = 11), thin, setose or with minute barbs; setae p3 about 27 µm long (range 20–30, n = 11) barbed, thicker than p1 (Fig. 23). Single specimen with asymmetical hypertricous p3 seta on right side. Lyrifissures im, ip, ih, and ips present, all about 10 µm long; im anteriomedial to notogastral alveoli lp. Ventral region: Apodeme IV forming shallow furrow with minitectum on anterior portion, thinning near genital aperture as described by Grandjean (1970). Coxisternal setae barbed, acuminate, relatively long; formula (epimeres I to IV) 3–1–3–3. Setae lengths as follows: 1a, 1b, 1c about 33, 71, 68 µm, respectively, 2a, 3a, 3b, 3c about 32, 26, 74, 24 µm, respectively, and 4a, 4b, 4c about 30, 29 and 24 µm, respectively. Extra 2a setae on right side of single specimen ( Fig. 17 ). Six pairs of genital setae ranging in length from 18–23 µm, with longest g5 and g6, setose. Aggenital seta about 21 µm long, setose, asymmetry observed in a single specimen (two pairs of aggenital setae on left side). Two pairs of anal setae about 13 µm long. Three pairs of adanal setae; ad3 20 µm, thin, barbed, different from ad1 and ad2 which are barbed, thicker, about 29 and 27 µm long, respectively, subequal to p3 ( Fig. 17 , Fig. 19). Lyrifissure iad 8 µm long, anteriolateral to ad3. Gnathosoma: Subcapitular mentum without tectum; one pair of setae h about 53 µm long; gnathosomal setae m 44 µm long; a about 28 µm long (Fig. 20).

Legs: Ratio of leg IV to body length about 0.7:1. Approximate lengths of leg segments (femur, genu, tibia, tarsus; in µm): I 135, 38, 73, 141; II 97, 24, 66, 118; III 64, 35, 84, 124; IV 72, 57, 112, 162. Pretarsus tridactylous with large smooth empodial and slightly thinner lateral claws. Setation (I–IV, number of solenidia in parentheses): trochanters 1–1–2–1; femora 5–4–3–2; genua 3(1)–3(1)–2(1)–3; tibiae 4(2)–4(1)–3(1)–3(1); tarsi 20(2)–15(2)–15– 12; setation indicated in Table 2. Femur of leg II–IV with well developed ventral keel; femur leg I relatively slender without ventral keel. Seta d absent from genua and tibiae of leg I, no evidence of retention associated with socket of solenidion ϕ1, as illustrated for Ceratoppia bipilis ( Grandjean 1935) . Tibiae solenidion ϕ1 of leg I flagellate, well anterior of ϕ2. Leg I tarsal solenidia ω1 and ω2 flagellate; famulus e tiny, spinose. Leg II tarsal solenidia ω1 and ω2 subequal, straight. Leg IV seta l’ of tibia and tarsus large, heavily barbed, almost 100 µm long. Single specimen with deformed right leg I tibia and tarsus; tibia slightly reduced in size and missing v’; tarsus greatly reduced in size (approximately half the length), without claws, ending in a blunt curve, setae greatly reduced in size, some phylloform.

Remarks. Ceratoppia tofinoensis n. sp. is differentiated from other species of Ceratoppia by a unique set of character states rather than a single diagnostic character: two pairs of short posterior setae (p1, p3); single pair of hypostomal setae on mentum; interlamellar setae longer than lamellar cusps; lamellae not reaching the insertion of the rostral setae; medial rostral tooth. Patterns of posterior setal expression for C. tofinoensis n. sp. follow the dominant character state of two pairs of posterior seta (p1 and p3) expressed ( Seniczak & Seniczak 2010), although the reduction of h1 alveoli to small depressions suggests a variability in h1, p1 setae expression in other species may be more complicated than previously considered.

Distribution.: Ceratoppia tofinoensis n. sp. appears to have a restricted distribution within the coastal temperate rainforest of the North American Pacific Northwest, possibly due to low sampling in arboreal habitats, or general low abundance compared to C. indentata and C. longicupsis . Within Canada, C. tofinoensis appears restricted to west coastal locations on Vancouver Island, occurring with highest densities within Clayoquot Sound UNESCO Biosphere reserve near the town of Tofino, British Columbia. Southern records of C. tofinoensis through Washington and Oregon States are for single specimens, but include more continental locations such as Mt. Hood National Forest, Oregon and the Willamette National Forest, Oregon. Ceratoppia tofinoensis may be an arboreal specialist, which would reduce the incidence of collection in most sampling, and explain the low occurrence in the rest of C. tofinoensis range.

Figures

FIGURES 16 – 17. Ceratoppia tofinoensis n. sp., adult female. 16, Dorsal aspect; 17, Ventral aspect. Legs removed. Scale bars = 300 µm.