Tuckerella parsi Khadem & Asadi, 2018

Safdarkhani, Hamid Khadem & Asadi, Mahdieh, 2018, A new species of the genus Tuckerella (Acari: Trombidiformes: Tuckerellidae) from Iran, Acarologia 58 (1), pp. 15-30 : 16-18

Tuckerella parsi Khadem & Asadi n. sp. ( Figs. 1 – 11 )

Zoobank: ED651AFF-6777-4930-83FB-51501768C3BA

Type material examined — Holotype female ( SBUC) and three female paratypes ( SBUC), five female tritonymphs (4 SBUC, 1 ACASI), five protonymphs (4 SBUC, 1 ACASI), four males (3 SBUC, 1 ACASI) ex Tamarix aphylla (Tamaricaceae) , Iran: Kerman Province, Manujan , 27°19’N 57°29’E, 18 October 2014, coll. H. Khadem Safdarkhani.

Diagnosis

Adult female: Rostrum very long, passing base of tarsi I, prodorsum and most dorsal hysterosoma covered with closed cells; prodorsal setae palmate v1 (dissimilar to other prodorsal setae) with rounded tips and prodorsal setae v1 longer than v2; setal row H with six pairs of flagellate setae and two pairs of short palmate setae h ( 1 shorter than h6); setae h3 shorter than other flagellate setae; opisthosomal setae f1 and f2 subequal; c4 about two thirds the length of distance between c4–sc2; femur and genu of leg III each with three setae (two ventral and one dorsal). All setae on tarsi I – IV except setae p 𝜁 and both ft barbed.

Description

FEMALE ( Figs. 1–3 )(n=4). Body oval, orange in color, length ( vi–h1) 271 (268 – 273), width ( c5–c5) 186 (185 – 191).

Gnathosoma — Rostrum long, passing base of tarsi I, with long ventral setae m. Palp setal formula: 0–0–1–3–4, genual seta barbed, tibial setae slender, tarsus with two eupathidia, one solenidion and one tactile seta ( Fig. 1C ). Peritreme anastomosed distally ( Fig. 1E ).

Dorsum ( Fig. 1A ) — Dorsal shields covered with cells forming reticulate pattern. Dorsal setae expanded, leaf-like, toothed margins, except setae vi smooth, without barbules. Hysterosomal setae, c1–7, d1–5, e1–4, h1 and h6, subcircular, subrectangular. Lengths of dorsal setae: vi 45 (43 – 48), ve 32 (32 – 34), sci 37 (35 – 38), sce 42 (43 – 47), c1 47 (44 – 47), c2 45 (44 – 46), c3 42 (41 – 44), c4 39 (38 – 41), c539 (39 – 42), c6 39 (37 – 40), c7 39 (38 – 40), d1 34 (33 – 37), d2 32 (30 – 33), d3 37 (35 – 38), d4 58 (56 – 59), d561 (59 – 62), e1 29 (28 – 30), e2 32 (31 – 34), e3 63 (60 – 64), e4 55 (54 – 58), f1 28 (27 – 28), f2 28 (27 – 29); posterior margin of opisthosoma with six pairs of long flagellate setae ( h2, h3, h4, h5, h7, h8) and two pairs of expanded setae h ( 1 and h6), same as dorsal setae; lengths: h1 42 (40 – 43), h2 358 (353 – 361), h3 229 (225 – 234), h4 351 (346 – 354), h5 316 (312 – 319), h6 53 (51 – 56), h7 337 (334 – 341), h8 297 (294 – 302).

Venter ( Fig. 1B ) — Ventral striae pattern: longitudinal striae laterad setae 1a but smooth medially, band of transverse striae between seta 1a and 3a; longitudinal striae on both sides of body between coxa II and III, smooth around setae 3a and 4a; striae on rest of venter up to genital plate transverse, striae on pregenital area surrounding setae ag1 longitudinal to oblique, genital and pseudanal region smooth. Pregenital setae two pairs ag ( 1–2), genital setae four pairs ( g1–4) and pseudanal setae three pairs ps ( 1–3), pregenital, genital and anal plate difficult to discern. Setae 1a more than two and four times as long as 3a and 4a, respectively; setae 2c thick, barbed; setae ps2 barbed, all other setae smooth. Length of ventral setae: 1a 86 (83 – 87), 1b 27 (29 – 31), 1c 25 (25 – 28), 2b 40 (38 – 41), 2c 67 (66 – 70), 3a 30 (28 – 30), 3b 22 (22 – 24), 3c 5 (5 – 6), 4a 18 (17 – 19), 4b 18 (18 – 20), 4c 6 (5 – 6), ag1 19 (19 – 20), ag2 18 (17 – 19), g1 12 (11 – 12), g2 11 (10 – 11), g3 23 (22 – 24), g4 23 (22 – 25), ps1 11 (11 – 12), ps2 16 (15 – 17), ps3 33 (32 – 35).

Legs ( Figs. 1D , 2 A–D, 3A–D) — Tarsal claws claw-like and empodium pad-like with tenent hairs. Setation of legs I – IV: coxae 2( 1b, 1c) – 2( 2b, 2c) – 1( 3b) – 1( 4b); trochanters 1( v’) – 1( v’) – 1( v’) – 1( v’); femora 7( d, v’, v”, v’1, bv”, l’, l”) – 7( d, v’, v”, v’1, bv”, l’, l”) – 3( ev’, d, l’) – 1( ev’); genua 7( d, v’, v”, l’, l”, l’1, l”1) – 6( d, v’, v”, l’, l”, l’1) – 3( d, v’, l’) –

2( d, v’); tibiae 8( d, v’, v”, l’, l”, l’1, l”1, 𝜑) – 5( d, v’, v”, l’, l”) – 5( d, v’, v”, l’, l”) – 4( d, v’, v”, l”); tarsi 14( pv’, l”1, pl’, pl”, ft’, ft”, ω’, ω”, u’, u”, p’ 𝜁, p” 𝜁, tc’, tc”) – 11( pv’, pl”, ft’, ft”, ω”, u’, u”, p’ 𝜁, p” 𝜁, tc’, tc”) – 7( pv’, ft’, ft”, u’, u”, tc’, tc”) – 7( pv’, ft’, ft”, u’, u”, tc’, tc”).

Figures

Figure 1 Tuckerella parsi n. sp. (female): A – dorsum; B – venter; C – palp, scale bar 50 μm; D – pretarsus, scale bar 20 μm; E – end of peritreme, scale bar 10 μm.

Figure 2 Tuckerella parsi n. sp. (female): right legs I – IV, scale bar 50 μm.

Figure 3 Tuckerella parsi n. sp. (female): tibia & tarsi, right legs I – IV, scale bar 50 μm.

Figure 4 Tuckerella parsi n. sp. (male): A – dorsum, B – venter, C – palp, D – aedeagus, scale bar 50 μm; E – pretarsus, scale bar 20 μm.

Figure 5 Tuckerella parsi n. sp. (male): left legs I – IV, scale bar 50 μm.

Figure 6 Tuckerella parsi n. sp. (male): tibia & tarsi, left legs I – IV, scale bar 50 μm.

Figure 7 Tuckerella parsi n. sp. (tritonymph): A – end of venter, B – palp, scale bar 50 μm; C – pretarsus, scale bar 20 μm; (protonymph): D – end of venter, E – palp, scale bar 50 μm; F – pretarsus, scale bar 20 μm.

Figure 8 Tuckerella parsi n. sp. (tritonymph): right legs I – IV, scale bar 50 μm.

Figure 9 Tuckerella parsi n. sp. (tritonymph): tibia & tarsi, right legs I – IV, scale bar 50 μm.

Figure 10 Tuckerella parsi n. sp. (protonymph): right legs I – IV, scale bar 50 μm.

Figure 11 Tuckerella parsi n. sp. (protonymph): tibia & tarsi, right legs, scale bar 50 μm.