Caleremaeus Berlese, 1910

Norton, Roy A. & Behan-Pelletier, Valerie M., 2020, Two unusual new species of Caleremaeus (Acari: Oribatida) from eastern North America, with redescription of C. retractus and reevaluation of the genus, Acarologia 60 (2), pp. 398-448 : 402-403

Caleremaeus Berlese, 1910

Type species: Damaeus monilipes Michael, 1882 (p. 16). The original combination often has been given in the literature as Notaspis monilipes , but this was a later recombination by Michael (1888).

Etymology — Berlese (1910) did not indicate the etymology of Caleremaeus , but the stem eremaios is Greek (meaning solitary) and is the basis for the older genus name Eremaeus Koch, 1835 . The prefix ‘cal’, if also based on Greek, would be from kalos, meaning beautiful. While less likely, Berlese might have mixed languages: if ‘cal’ were Latin-based it could relate to the habitat of the type species C. monilipes , which Michael (1882) collected from rotten wood (Latin: cala, piece of wood).

Diagnosis — Brachypylina with small to medium-sized adults (length 306–475 µm), overall shape elongate-pyriform in dorsoventral view. Integument with enveloping cerotegument, usually with dense, dome- to mushroom-shaped excrescences; sclerotized procuticle partly foveate to foveolate. Prodorsum with or without paired, ridge-like lamella and tutorium; with or without prodorsal enantiophysis. Rostrum with strongly developed submarginal crest. Bothridial seta with basal stalk and flattened, expanded head. Dorso- and pleurophragmata absent. Notogaster without porose organs; anterior margin nearly straight, with small dentate tubercles or knots; with distinct humeral process opposing tubercle(s) on posterior wall of bothridium to form humeral enantiophysis; with strong topography consisting of relatively flat lateral region and two strong bulges (transverse anterior bulge and longitudinal posterior bulge) separated by foveate transverse sulcus; with 10 pairs of setae, marginal to submarginal. Pedotectum I present, II absent; propodolateral apophysis absent; discidial ridge usually present, distinct discidium present or absent; circumpedal carina absent; lateral, parastigmatic and aggenital enantiophyses present; coxisternum with distinct medial fossa between setae 4a. Subcapitular rutellum atelobasic. Legs relatively short, tibiae I, II unusually large, with narrow basal stalk and swollen distal bulb, I with dorsodistal process; pretarsi monodactylous; seta d absent from genua I–III and all tibiae; iteral setal pair present on tarsi I–II, only it ஧ on III, none on IV. Nymphs plicate, eupheredermous, gastronotum with papilliform attachment cornicle; setal pair h 1 adjacent on extension of pygidial sclerite; paraprocts atrichous in larva, proto- and deutonymph.

Adult