Hoploseius Berlese

De Moraes, Gilberto J., Britto, Erika P. J., Mineiro, Jefferson L. De C. & Halliday, Bruce, 2016, Catalogue of the mite families Ascidae Voigts & Oudemans, Blattisociidae Garman and Melicharidae Hirschmann (Acari: Mesostigmata), Zootaxa 4112 (1), pp. 1-299 : 39-40

Hoploseius Berlese

FEMALE

Gnathosoma. Anterior margin of epistome smooth, usually subtriangular, with acute or round tip (in some specimens of H. yini (Bai, Fang & Chen), tip divided in 2–3 spines; with three pointed projections in H. tenuis Lindquist ; convex in some species). Seta h2 shorter than h1, h3 and pc (very short in H. tenuis ); lengths of the latter three setae variable; insertion of h2 slightly posterior to insertion of h3. Inner palp trochanter seta usually distinctly longer than outer seta (the latter minute in H. tenuis and H. yini ), but not greatly elongate. Deutosternum moderately wide, with subparallel to posteriorly divergent delimiting lateral lines and seven (nine in H. mariae Gwiazdowicz ) usually equidistant rows of 5–20 denticles each. Corniculi 1.5–3 times as long as their basal widths, well separated from each other, subparallel. Cheliceral digits of similar lengths, stout; fixed digit usually with apical, transverse row of 3–8 teeth followed by a longitudinal row of 4–14 teeth; movable digit usually with three teeth (reported to have one tooth in H. andamanensis Bhattacharyya and two teeth in H. drosophili (Chant)) in addition to apical tooth.

Idiosoma. Ovoid (elongate in H. tenuis ). Dorsum: dorsal shield usually reticulate, without lateral incisions at region of fusion or delineated strip along lateral margins; anterior end of dorsal shield not strongly deflexed. No supernumerary setae on dorsal shield. Podonotal region of shield with 16–23 pairs of setae, including r3, which is distinctly more perpendicular to shield margin and/or slightly longer than neighbouring setae, or similar to neighbouring setae (r3 on unsclerotised lateral cuticle in H. bispinosetus Faraji, Sakenin-Chelav & Karg ). Opisthonotal region of shield usually with 15 pairs of setae (13 pairs in H. tenuis ; 16 in H. sitalaensis Bhattacharyya ). Unsclerotised lateral cuticle with 1–7 pairs of setae. Most dorsal and lateral setae of idiosoma short, except for most posterior setae, which may be distinctly longer (J4 stubby in H. bispinosetus ); setae usually acicular and smooth. Venter: presternal platelets indistinct, but with sclerotised presternal region confluent with sternal shield. Sternal shield with three pairs of setae of similar lengths (st1–st3); st2 slightly closer to st3 than to st1 (much closer in H. tenuis ); posterior shield margin slightly to distinctly concave. Genital shield not wide enough to include iv5, but including st5; posteriorly truncate (slightly convex in H. cometa (Berlese) ; convex in H. tenuis ). Two pairs of metapodal plates, the anterior ellipsoid, smaller, the posterior elongate (a single slender, longitudinally oriented plate in C. tenuis ). Usually with two pairs of elongate platelets between genital and ventrianal shields (a pair in H. tenuis ; three pairs in H. cometa ). Opisthogaster with 8–10 pairs of setae (five pairs in H. tenuis ) in addition to circumanal setae, 5–7 pairs of which on broad, semicircular ventrianal shield (elongate in H. tenuis ); para-anal setae inserted between levels of posterior margin and mid-length of anal opening, usually about as long as or slightly shorter than post-anal seta (slightly longer than post-anal seta in H. australianus Walter ). Anal opening not enlarged, 1/6 to 1/9 of shield length (1/ 15 in H. tenuis ), close to posterior shield margin. Anterior section of endopodal shield fused with sternal shield; section behind sternal shield reduced to an elongate shallow V-shaped or wavy platelet between coxae III–IV. Exopodal shield distinct along coxae II–IV.

Peritreme. Extending from stigma to region between levels of s1 and s2, narrower than diameter of stigma. Peritrematic shield wide, broadly fused with dorsal shield at level between z1 and s1 and with exopodal shield beside coxa IV.

Legs. Median section of pulvilli of legs I–IV rounded. Setation of legs I–IV, genu: 11, 11, 9, 9; tibia: 11, 10, 8, 10 (in H. tenuis , genu: 8, 7, 6, 6 and tibia: 9, 7, 7, 7; in H. drosophili , genu IV with eight setae). Leg II markedly thickened (except in H. tenuis ), with strong, opposable spine-shaped setae on ventral surface, including at least one such spine on each of femur, genu, tibia and tarsus (spine-shaped setae weakly developed in H. tenuis ). Leg III often with ventral spine-shaped setae on one or more of these segments. Legs without macrosetae.

Spermathecal apparatus. Phytoseiid-type.

MALE

Cheliceral digits of similar lengths, about as stout as in female; fixed digit with 10–11 teeth in addition to apical tooth (apical transverse row of two teeth followed by longitudinal row of 4–6 teeth in H. tenuis ) and setiform pilus dentilis; movable digit with one tooth in addition to apical tooth; spermatodactyl either almost straight to distinctly bent ventrally, wide, with bulbous tip, about as long as movable digit. Dorsal shield with ornamentation similar to female, but broader, including all r - R setae ; with fewer setae on unsclerotised lateral cuticle than in female; posterior Z and S setae inserted on tubercles (except in H. tenuis ). Shape of dorsal setae similar to female. Presternal platelets usually absent. Sternogenital shield usually with five pairs of setae (st1–st5; st5 absent in some specimens of H. tenuis ) and three pairs of lyrifissures (iv1–iv3); posterior margin slightly convex to slightly concave; st1–st5 about equally spaced and of similar lengths (except in H. tenuis in which st1 is well anterior to st2 and st5 is well posterior to st4). Endopodal shield fused with sternogenital shield; posterior end of endopodal shield extending behind to partially encircle posteromedian margin of coxa IV. Metapodal plates absent. Opisthogaster usually with six pairs of setae (five pairs in H. tenuis ), all of which on broad, subtriangular ventrianal shield (Jv5 on unsclerotised cuticle in H. bispinosetus ). Peritrematic shield fused with exopodal shield beside coxa IV. Leg setation similar to female. Leg II with spine-shaped setae; legs III–IV may also have some spine-shaped setae.