Zercon marinae IVAN et CĂLUGĂR, 2004

Ujvári, Zs. & Cälugär, A, 2010, New Zerconid Mite Species (Acari: Mesostigmata: Zerconidae) From Romania, Acta Zoologica Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae 56 (3), pp. 235-255 : 247-251

Zercon marinae IVAN et CĂLUGĂR, 2004

( Figs 13–18 )

Type material examined. Female holotype and paratypes: 86 females, 2 males and 1 deutonymph: Romania, Vlădeni , Iaşi County, Lolium perenne and Poa bulbosa meadow, 14.05.1972, leg. N. VASILIU (deposited in the IBRR) .

Additional material. 6 females and 3 males: Romania, Gropniţa , Iaşi County, Lolium perenne and Agrostis stolonifera meadow, 4.05.1971, leg. N. VASILIU .

Diagnosis. Anterior margin of ventroanal shield with one pair of setae. Marginal r- and R-setae finely barbed distally. Setae I1–2 smooth, short. I3–6 thick, barbed and provided with hyaline sheaths, growing in length from I3 to I6. Pores Po3 situated above line connecting I5 and Z4. Dorsal cavities of general size and appearance. Anterior part of opisthonotum with reticulate ornamentation, posterior surface foveolate.

Description. Female. Length of idiosoma: 428 µm in holotype (403–454 µm in 93 paratypes; average 431 µm); width: 320 µm (288–333 µm; 332 µm).

Dorsal side ( Fig. 13 ). Podonotum with 22 pairs of setae: i-row with 6 pairs, z-row with 2 pairs, s-row with 6 pairs, r-row with 6 pairs, p-row with 2 pairs. Podonotal setae short (10–28 µm), most of them smooth, except setae i1 and marginal ones, which barbed and distally provided with hyaline sheath. Lateral surface of shield covered by tile-like pattern, central surface with reticulate ornamentation.

Opisthonotum with 22 pairs of setae: I-row with 6 pairs, Z-row with 5 pairs, S-row with 4 pairs and R-row with 7 pairs. Setae I1–2 short and simple; I3–6 much thicker than anterior two pairs of I-row, barbed and provided distally with hyaline sheath. I3–4 reaching bases of following setae of row. I5 not reaching insertions of next setae of row. In Z-row, setae Z1–2 short and simple. Z3–4 much thicker than other Z-setae. Z5 short, barbed and with hyaline sheath. In S-row, S1 short and smooth, S2 longer than S1, stouter and provided with barbs and hyaline sheaths. Setae S3 longer and stouter than S2, more densely barbed and having hyaline sheath. S4 thick, barbed bearing hyaline sheath at end and exceeding body edge with 2/3 of their length. All marginal setae provided with 2–3 barbs and distally bearing hyaline sheath. Lengths of setae and distances between setal bases as in Table 7. Marginal serration of dorsal idiosoma shallow and obtuse. Opisthonotum reticulated on lateral sides, up to bases of I3, Z2 and S2; rest of it covered by foveolar sculpture. Dorsal fossae equal in size and arranged in parallel direction to body axis.

Poroidotaxy. Pores po1 situated axially to bases of setae s1, po2 lying below line connecting i4-s4, po3 located axially to line connecting s5–6. Pores Po1 situated anteroparaxially to bases of Z1, Po2 located below line connecting setae S2–Z2. Pores Po3 situated on line connecting setae I4–Z4. Pores Po4 located below bases of S4.

Ventral side ( Fig. 14 ). Chaetotaxy, poroidotaxy and shape of ventral shields typical for genus Zercon . Peritremes firmly curved. Sternal shield well sclerotized, 74 µm long and 70 µm wide at level of setae st2, with slightly arcuate posterior margin and reticulate ornamentation. Adgenital platelets present, with three gland-openings each. Anterior side of ventroanal shield bearing one pair of setae (Vm1). Surface of ventroanal shield covered by reticulate pattern. All of ventroanal setae simple, except barbed postanal seta. Ventroanal pores situated posterolaterally to adanal setae.

Male ( Figs 16–17 ). Length of idiosoma: 332–352 µm; width: 237–243 µm (n = 5); average: length: 342 µm; width: 239 µm.

Chaetotaxy and poroidotaxy of dorsal shields as in female. Lengths of setae and distances between setal bases as in Table 7. Shape of chelicerae ( Fig. 17 ) differs from that of females ( Fig. 15, 17 ) as presented, without specific peculiarities. As we remarked at different species ( Zercon aniellae SOLOMON, 1984 , Zercon hungaricus HALAŠKOVA, 1969 , Zercon fageticola SELLNICK, 1958 , Prozercon plumosus CĂLUGĂR, 2004 ) the terminal part of the fixed chela from the male’s chelicera is straighter than of the female’s and incised at the end. The female’s chelicera has both cheliceral segment curved and sharp, similar to a “parrot beak” ( CĂLUGĂR 2006).

Deutonymph. Dorsum ( Fig. 18 ). Length of idiosoma: 358 µm; width: 250 µm (n = 1).

Shape of podonotal setae different to that of adults. Most of podonotal setae smooth, except densely barbed i1, setae s4–s6 and marginal setae r3–r6 which barbed and provided with hyaline sheath at tips. Podonotal ornamentation weakly developed, only fine punctuation present. ventroanal shield, 17 = chelicera of male, 18 = dorsal view of deutonymph

Opisthonotal setae different to that of adult forms. Setae I6 long, thick, barbed and provided with hyaline sheath at end, rest of I-setae smooth and short. In Z-row, only Z1 and Z2 short and smooth, Z3–4 long, thick and provided with hyaline sheath at their end. Z3 reaching bases of setae Z4. Z4 exceeding edge of body. Z5 short, barbed with hyaline sheath. In S row, only setae S1 smooth. S2–4 barbed and provided with hyaline sheath at their end. Marginal R-setae short, smooth. Lengths of setae and distances between setal bases as in Table 7. Reticulate microsculpture of shield weakly developed. Area between I-rows and lateral surface of shield foveolated. Dorsal cavities equal in size and with axes parallel to that of body.

Pores Po1 not visible, rest of pores with same position as in adult stage.

Differential diagnosis. The species belongs to the group with full complement of podonotal and opisthonotal setae, one pair of setae on the anterior part of the ventrianal shield, I1–I5 heterogeneous in shape and length, of which the first two pairs short and thin and mostly resembles Zercon balearicus ATHIAS-HENRIOT, 1961 and Zercon cretensis UJVÁRI, 2008 by the similarity of the ornamentation, general shape of the body, the shape and situation of opisthonotal setae. The distinguishing characters between the three species are given in Table 8.

Figures

Figs 13–18. Zercon marinae IVAN et CĂLUGĂR, 2004: 13 = dorsal view of female, 14 = ventral view of female, 15 = chelicera of female, 16 = sternogenital region of male with the anterior margin of