Feltria kulluis, Pesic, Vladimir & Panesar, Arne, 2008

Pesic, Vladimir & Panesar, Arne, 2008, Studies on water mites (Acari, Hydrachnidia) from the Himalayas, I. The water mite genus Feltria Koenike, with descriptions of eight new species, Zootaxa 1758, pp. 1-28 : 16-18

Feltria kulluis sp. nov.

( Figs. 44–49 )

Type series. Holotype: male, dissected and slide-mounted in Hoyer's fluid. India: Himachal Pradesh State, IND' 95/154 Kullu-Valley, Hermeli/spring area, Kunoi-Nala, 8 h trek, spring region, mosses/lotic, 3800m, 11.vii.1995. Paratypes: one male, IND' 95/147 Kullu Valley, Kunoi Nala, headwaters/spring area, 3600m, 11.vii.1995.

Females probably belonging to this species (not included in the type series): IND' 95/147 (0/13/0), one of them dissected and slide-mounted in Hoyer's fluid.

Diagnosis. Males: Genital field somewhat triangular; the tarsus of male leg III with an elongated rounded ventrolateral bulge, bearing 10-11 long setae.

Description. Male: Idiosoma L/W 428/334. Dorsal shield large, L/W 269/237, bearing 4 pairs of setae: Postoc, Dgl-3, Dgl-5, Dgl-6 ( Fig. 44 ). In the posterior part of the body one central pair of plates present, bearing setae and glandularia Dgl-7. The excretory pore occupies a terminal position and opens on a small plate and is dorsal ( Fig. 48 ).

Leg coxae are incorporated into 4 groups, and occupy more than half of the ventral body surface ( Fig. 45 ). Anterior coxae with well developed posterior apodemes; Cxgl-2 located laterally on posterior margin of Cx-2. Posterior groups of coxae with secondary sclerotization, which extends to lateral and posterior margins of Cx- 4. Genital field somewhat triangular, posterior margin medially indented, L 147, W 203, with 25-29 genital acetabula on each side of genital opening, which opens in the anterior part of the plate.

Shape and chaetotaxy of palp as in Fig. 46 ; P-2 ventral margins slightly convex; P-4 ventral margin convex; palp total L 245, dL and %L (in parentheses, given as % of total L): P-1 23 (9.4), P-2 61 (24.9), P-3 35 (14.3), P-4 77 (31.4), P-5 49 (20.0); L P-2/P-4 ratio 0.79.

Tarsus of leg III with an elongated rounded ventrolateral bulge ( Fig. 47 ), bearing 10-11 long setae. L of III-L-2-6: 42, 49, 70, 80, 96; IV-L- 6 with one long, slender, ventral seta; L of IV-L-1-6: 78, 38, 63, 100, 105, 106.

Female: Idiosoma L/W 453/359, dorsal shield L/W 216/194. Female morphology is similar to that of the male. It differs in the integument sclerotization ( Fig. 48 ), genital field, and III-L-6. The posterior part of the dorsum having 3 pairs of plates: 2 pairs of small anterior ones, a posterior plates large and at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the body. The leg coxae occupy more than half of the ventral body surface. Apodemes of anterior coxae short. Genital plates ( Fig. 49 ) shorter than the genital opening, their median margins straight and converge anteriorly. Genital plate L 98, W 93, with 27-31 genital acetabula.

Palp total L 230, dL and %L (in parentheses, given as % of total L): P-1 24 (10.4), P-2 52 (22.6), P-3 36 (15.7), P-4 70 (30.4), P-5 48 (20.9); L P-2/P-4 ratio 0.74. III-L-6 without ventrolateral projection

Discussion. Due to the shape of the dorsum and genital field, the male of Feltria kulluis sp. nov. resembles the following species F. balneatoris sp. nov., from which it is easily distinguished by the shape of the ventrolateral projection on the tarsus of leg III. F. k u l l u i s sp. nov. has a large elongated convex bulge bearing 10–11 long setae, while F. balneatoris sp. nov. has a small and rounded ventrolateral projection bearing 4–5 setae (compare Fig. 47 with Fig. 55 ).

Etymology. The name refers to the locus typicus situated in the Kullu Valley (Himachal Pradesh). Habitat. Discovered in mosses in a mountain stream.

Distribution. Known only from the region of the type locality in the Kullu Valley (Himachal Pradesh, India) in the western Himalayas.

Figures

FIGURES 44 – 47. Feltria kulluis sp. nov., male holotype: 44 = idiosoma, dorsal view; 45 = idiosoma, ventral view; 46 = palp, lateral view; 47 = III-L- 5 / 6. Scale Bars = 100 µm.

FIGURES 48 – 49. Feltria kulluis sp. nov., female: 44 = idiosoma, dorsal view; 45 = idiosoma, ventral view. Scale Bars = 100 µm.

FIGURES 50 – 55. Feltria balneatoris sp. nov., male (50 – 53 = holotype, 54 – 55 = paratype): 50 = idiosoma, dorsal view; 51 = idiosoma, ventral view; 52 - 53 = III-L- 5 / 6; 54 = palp, lateral view; 55 = III-L- 5 / 6. Scale Bars = 100 µm.