Gondwanabates spatulifer, Smit, Harry, 2015

Smit, Harry, 2015, The water mite family Hygrobatidae Koch in Australia. The genera Aspidiobatella Cook, Australorivacarus Viets, Gondwanabates Imamura and Rhynchaustrobates Cook (Acari: Hydrachnidia), Zootaxa 4033 (4), pp. 567-583 : 574-575

Gondwanabates spatulifer n. sp.

( Figs 6 A–D)

Type material. Holotype male, Wannon River at crossing with Serra Road, Grampians NP, Victoria, Australia, 37º 20.918 S 142º 30.386 E, alt. 331 m asl, 15-iii-2008 ( NMV). Paratype: one male, Mt Williams Creek, downstream of Kalymna Falls, Grampians NP, 37º 19.034 S 142º 36.212 E, 18-iii-2008 ( NMV); two males, Jimmy Creek at campground, Grampians NP, 37º 22.339 S 142º 30.203 E, alt. 379 m asl, 15-iii-2008 ( RMNH).

Diagnosis. I-leg-5 with a broad, somewhat spoon-shaped seta; capitulum plus anchoral process relatively short; leg segments relatively short.

Description. Idiosoma ventrally 446 (397–429) long, dorsally 405 (365–393) long and 316 (292–309) wide. Dorsal and ventral shields present. Dorsum with two large plates, anterior plate 219 long, posterior plate 154 long; dorsal posterior plate with two pairs of glandularia. Anterior coxal plates extending beyond anterior idiosoma margin. Capitulum plus anchoral process 158 (140–154) long. Gonopore 78 long, relatively wide. Genital field with three pairs of acetabula. Length of P1–P5: 18, 70, 30, 52, 30. Palp stocky; P2 and P3 with large denticles, P4 with a ventral extension, P5 with a small ventral extension. Length of I-leg-4–6: 96, 78, 88. I-leg-5 with a broad, somewhat spoon-shaped seta near the middle of segment, ventrodistal seta not enlarged. Length of IV-leg-4-6: 106, 116, 84.

Female: Unknown.

Etymology. Named after the spoon-shaped seta of the first leg.

Remarks. With Cook (1986) the new species keys out as G. g e m b u s, but this species the idiosoma with posterolateral humps, the posterolateral margin of the fourth coxae less oblique, a broader I-leg-5, a less stockier palp and a narrower gonopore. The palp and I-leg are similar to G. v i et s i, but this species has a much longer capitulum + anchoral process (205–222), a less stout and not spoon-shaped ventral seta of I-leg-5 while the I- and IV-leg segments are longer. Moreover, G. vietsi has the posterior dorsal plate with three or four glandularia.

Figures

FIGURE 6. Gondwanabates spatulifer n. sp., holotype male; A. venter; B. dorsum; C. palp; D. I-leg- 4 – 6. Scale bars = 50 µm.