Neoseiulella aceris (Lehman), 2004

Kanouh, M., Kreiter, S., Douin, M. & Tixier, M. - S., 2012, Revision Of The Genus Neoseiulella Muma (Acari: Phytoseiidae). Re-Description Of Species, Synonymy Assessment, Biogeography, Plant Supports And Key To Adult Females, Acarologia 52 (3), pp. 259-348 : 273-274

Neoseiulella aceris (Lehman)

( Figure 4 )

Heteroseiulus aceris Lehman 1982: 236 , 283. Neoseiulella aceris (Lehman) Moraes et al. 2004: 291 ; Chant and McMurtry 2007: 147.

Adult female ( Figure 4a – d )

Dorsal shield ( Figure 4a ) — Dorsal shield distinctly reticulated throughout: length 318, width 180 (at level of s4) and 210 (at level of Z1). One pair of solenostomes gd9 on the dorsal shield; other solenostomes, if present, not discernible because of the bad conditions of the specimen examined. No poroid visible. Sub-lateral setae r3 on the lateral margin, R1 on the dorsal shield. Dorsal shield bearing 20 pairs of setae (R1 on dorsal shield), serrated: j1 17; j3 25; j4 18; j5 18; j6 23; J2 36; J5 13; z2 19; z3 25; z4 29; z5 18; Z1 32; Z4 35; Z5 41; s4 32; s6 33; S2 35; S4 28; S5 17; sub-lateral setae r3 21 and R1 23. Peritreme extending anteriorly to the level of j3.

Ventral shields ( Figure 4b ) — Sternal shield 40 long and 61 wide (at level of ST2), smooth, with three pairs of setae (ST1, ST2 and ST3) and two pairs of poroids (posterior to ST1; anterior to ST3). ST3 inserted on an elongate projection of the sternal shield. A pair of metasternal setae (ST4) inserted on separate platelets with a pair of small poroids. Genital shield 132 long and 54 wide (at level of ST5), smooth. Four elongate platelets or genital sigilla between genital and ventrianal shields. One pair of poroids close to the genital shield (ST 5) and 1 pair of poroids around the genital shield. Ventrianal shield subquadrate-shaped, 97 long and 82 wide (at level of ZV2), reticulated, with four pairs of preanal setae (JV1, JV2, JV3 and ZV2) and a pair of solenostomes gv3 posterior to JV3. Four pairs of caudoventral setae (ZV1, ZV3, JV4 and JV5) on the integument surrounding the ventrianal shield. JV5 15 long, smooth. Primary metapodal plate or inguinal sigillum 33 long and 2 wide.

Spermatheca ( Figure 4c ) — Cervix 4 long, cupshaped, with an enlarged atrium.

Chelicera ( Figure 4d ) — Two teeth and a pilus dentilis on the fixed digit. Movable digit 27 long, edentate.

Legs — Measurements of legs: leg I 245; leg II 214; leg III 211; leg IV 270. Seven setae (2-2/0, 2/0- 1) on the genu II. No macroseta on legs.

Material examined — The female holotype deposited in the collection of the Florida, Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, USA .

Adult male Described by Lehman (1982). It has been impossible to borrow the male type specimen of this species.

Previous reports: N. aceris is only known from Pennsylvania ( USA; Nearctic area). Plant supports on which this species was collected are: A. platanoides (Aceraceae) ; Aesculus hippocastanum (Hippocastanaceae) ; Ilex crenata ’rotundifolia’ Thunb. ( Aquifoliaceae ); Juniperus virginiana L. ( Cupressaceae ); Pinus sylvestris L., Tsuga canadensis (L.) CarriŁre ( Pinaceae ); Taxus umbraculifera (Siebold ex Endl.) Ravenscroft var. hicksii (Hort. ex Rehder) Spjut (Taxaceae) .

The examination of the type materials of N. aceri , N. squamiger and N. aceris shows similar measurements. However, N. aceri differs from both N. squamiger and N. aceris by the position of the sub-lateral seta R1. Recent molecular experiments ( Kanouh et al. 2010) showed that the position of sub-lateral seta (R1) is not a valid diagnostic criteria to distinguish between these species and that N. squamiger and N. aceri are synonyms ( Kanouh et al. 2010). This agrees with the conclusions of Chant and Yoshida-Shaul (1989) and Kolodochka (1986). On the other hand, only one pair of solenostomes (gd9) is observed on N. aceris , whereas five pairs (gd1, gd2, gd6, gd8, gd9) are observed on N. aceri and N. squamiger . Lehman (1982) drew three pairs of solenostomes (gd2, gd6, gd8) that we did not observe on the specimen examined. As some authors have shown the importance of such characters for species differentiation (Chant and Yoshida- Shaul 1987; Ragusa and Tsolakis 1994; Tixier et al. 2006a, b), but as we do not know if this reliability is universal for species diagnostic, the synonymy of N. aceris and N. aceri / N. squamiger is still questioned. Examination of other female paratypes of N. aceris , as well as molecular analyses or cross breedings, would thus be required.

We thus consider that N. aceri is a senior synonym of N. squamiger , and we propose, at this time, that N. aceris as a provisional junior synonym of N. aceri .

Figures

FIGURE 4: Neoseiulella aceris (Lehman). Female (holotype): a – dorsal shield; b – ventral shields; c – spermatheca; d – chelicera.