Neoseiulus saudiensis, Negm, Mohamed W., Alatawi, Fahad J. & Aldryhim, Yousif N., 2012

Negm, Mohamed W., Alatawi, Fahad J. & Aldryhim, Yousif N., 2012, A new species of Neoseiulus Hughes, with records of seven species of predatory mites associated with date palm in Saudi Arabia (Acari: Phytoseiidae), Zootaxa 3356, pp. 57-64 : 58-59

Neoseiulus saudiensis n. sp.

( Figures 1–5 )

Female ( Figures 1–5 ) (n=5)

Dorsal idiosoma ( Figure 1 ). Dorsal shield 330 (324–337) long and 172 (165–180) wide at j6 level, completely reticulated, with 17 pairs of smooth dorsal setae except for Z4 and Z5, which are slightly serrate, and two pairs of lateral setae. Seven pairs of solenostomes present, gd1, gd2, gd4, gd5, gd6, gd8, gd9. Lengths of dorsal setae: j1 20 (18–21), j3 30 (29–31), j4 23 (22–25), j5 23 (23–24), j6 25 (24–27), J2 30 (29–30), J5 12 (12–13), z2 30 (30–31), z4 29 (28–29), z5 23 (23–24), Z1 28 (26–29), Z4 49 (48–50), Z5 69 (68–70), s4 40 (39–41), S2 37 (36–39), S4 34 (32–36), S5 31 (30–33) and lateral setae r3 26 (25–28), R1 27 (26–29). Peritreme extending to j1 level ( Figure 1 ).

Ventral idiosoma ( Figure 2 ). Sternal shield slightly reticulated, 63 (61–65) long (ST1–ST3) and 55 (54–58) wide at ST2 level, straight posterior and convex anterior margins, with three pairs of setae and two pairs of poroides (iv1–2). Setae ST1 26 (26–27), ST2 27 (27–28), ST3 26 (25–27) and ST4 28 (28–29) and a pair of poroides on metasternal shields. Genital shield 57 (56–58) wide at ST5 level, setae ST5 27 (26–27), paragenital poroides located on soft integument between setae ST5 and ZV1, posterior margin straight. Two pairs of metapodal shields present, primary 30 (29–32) and accessory 9 (9–10). Ventrianal shield 120 (118–121) along midline and 90 (88–92) wide at ZV2 level, reticulate, with three pairs of preanal setae JV1 24 (24–25), ZV2 25 (25–26), JV2 23 (22–24) and a pair of well separated glandular pores posteromesad to JV 2, distance between these pores 26 (26–27). Four pairs of smooth opisthogastric setae around the ventrianal shield ZV1 21 (20–22), ZV3 19 (18–20), JV4 22 (21–23), JV5 53 (51–54)-slightly serrate.

Spermatheca. Calyx of spermatheca saccular 21 (20–22) long, narrow neck connecting calyx with forked atrium ( Figure 3 ).

Chelicera ( Figure 4 ). Movable digit 25 (25–26) long with one tooth; fixed digit 27 (26–28) long with three teeth and a pilus dentilis 4 (4–5) long.

Legs. One pointed macroseta on basitarsus IV 53 (50–56) ( Figure 5 ); genua and tibiae I–IV with 10–7–7–7 and 10 –7–7–6 setae, respectively.

Etymology. The name saudiensis refers to the country where the type specimens were collected.

Specimens examined. Holotype female and 24 paratype females, on aerial part of Bermuda grass, Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers. ( Poaceae ) in a date palm orchard, Dereiya, Riyadh region, Saudi Arabia, 24º 42' N, 46º 37' E, alt. 645 m, 19 November 2010, coll. Mohamed W. Negm. Holotype and 22 paratypes deposited at King Saud Museum of Arthropods (KSMA); 1 paratype female at the National Insect and Mite Collection of the National Museum of Natural History (USNM), Smithsonian Institution, Beltsville, Maryland, USA; 1 paratype female at the Agriculture Research Council, Plant Protection Research Institute, Biosystematics Division, Pretoria, South Africa (ARC-PPRI).

Remarks. This species is characterised by the following combination of characters: dorsal shield completely reticulated, sternal shield slightly reticulated, peritreme extending to j1 level, calyx of spermatheca saccular and connected to a forked atrium with long narrow neck.

The new species belongs to the barkeri species group and the womersleyi species subgroup as defined by Chant & McMurtry (2003). Neoseiulus alpinus ( Schweizer, 1922) and Neoseiulus marginatus ( Wainstein, 1961) are similar to this new species. However, Neoseiulus saudiensis n. sp. differs from the former by having all dorsal setae much longer, sternal shield straight posteriorly, a longer neck between the calyx and atrium, and it differs from the latter in having longer anterodorsal setae (j3, j4, j5, j6, J2, z2, z4, z5, Z1, s4), completely reticulated dorsal shield, narrower and longer neck between calyx and atrium, and shorter macroseta St IV. The new species was compared with redescriptions of N. marginatus by Palevsky et al. (2009) and Faraji et al. (2011) on the specimens collected from Israel and Turkey, respectively.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 5. Neoseiulus saudiensis Negm, Alatawi & Aldryhim n. sp. Female, 1. idiosoma dorsum, 2. idiosoma venter, 3. spermatheca, 4. chelicera, 5. genu, tibia and basitarsus IV.