Tanytydeus cf. aegyptiacus ( Soliman, 1974 )

Khaustov, Alexander A., 2017, Review of the Paratydeidae (Acari: Prostigmata), with description of three new species, Zootaxa 4303 (2), pp. 151-212 : 191-195

Tanytydeus cf. aegyptiacus ( Soliman, 1974)

( Figs. 37–39 )

Hexatydeus aegyptiacus Soliman, 1974 , p. 198, fig. 1.

Tanytydeus aegyptiacus ( Soliman, 1974) : Khanjani et al. 2014a, p. 171. Tanytydeus cristatus: Kuznetsov 1973 , p. 14, fig. 2.

Description. FEMALE ( Figs. 37–39 ). Length of idiosoma 355, width 115. Gnathosoma . Palptarsus with three eupathidia (ul’ eupathidion-like). Subcapitular setae n slightly longer than m and both longer than subequal or 1-2. Idiosomal dorsum ( Fig. 37 A). All dorsal idiosomal setae pointed. Dorsal idiosomal setae ve, sci, sce, and c 2 smooth; other dorsal setae weakly barbed. Hysterosoma with transverse furrows between setal rows d-e, e-f and hps, respectively. Cupules im situated anterolaterally to setae e, cupules ip situated laterally to setae f 1 and anteromedially to setae f 2. Idiosomal venter ( Fig. 37 B). Setae 3 b, 3 c, 4 b, ad 2, and ps 2 weakly barbed; other ventral setae smooth. Setae ad 2 blunt-ended; other ventral setae pointed. Genital area with three pairs of simple aggenital setae and two pairs of genital setae. Genital opening with two pairs of genital acetabulae. Cupules ia situated anterolaterally to setae 3 a near lateral margin of the body; cupules ih situated posterolaterally to setae ag 3 near lateral margin of body. Lengths of idiosomal setae: ve 9, sci 46, sce 17, c 1 13, c 2 26, d 13, e 13, f 1 14, f 2 21, h 1 18, h 2 26, ps 1 22, ps 2 20, ps 3 35, ad 1 17, ad 2 15, ad 3 18, 1 a 25, 1 b 15, 1 c 10, 1 d 11, 2 a 26, 2 b 24, 2 c 9, 3 a 33, 3 b 19, 3 c 17, 4 a 16, 4 b 14, ag 1 21, ag 2 19, ag 3 23, g 1 9, g 2 10. Legs ( Figs. 38 , 39 ). Lengths of legs: leg I 125, leg II 82, leg III 86, leg IV 95. Leg I ( Fig. 38 A) Leg setation: Tr 0, Fe 3/5 (d, l’, l”, v’, v”, d 1, l’ 1, bv”), Ge 7(1) (d, l’, l”, v’, v”, l’ 1, l” 1, σ), Ti 8(1) (d, l’ξ, l”ξ, v’, v”, k, l’ 1, l” 1, φ), Ta 14(2) (p’ξ, p”ξ, tc’ξ, tc”ξ, ft’ξ, ft”ξ, a’, a”, u’, u”, s, pl”, pv’, pv”, ω 1, ω 2). Sensory pits of tarsus oval; ω 1 situated in the space between setae (tc), and (ft); ω 2 situated posterolaterally to seta ft’. Leg II ( Fig. 38 B). Leg setation: Tr 1 (v’), Fe 2 (d, bv”), Ge 3(1) (d, l’, l”, σ), Ti 4(1) (d, l’, v’, v”, φ), Ta 7(1) (p’, p”, tc ’, tc”, u’, u”, ε, ω). Setae p’ and tc’ blunt-ended. Empodium very small, about four times shorter than tarsal claws. Leg III ( Fig. 39 A). Leg setation: Tr 1 (v’), Fe 3 (d, v’, ev’), Ge 2 (l’, v’), Ti 3(1) (d, v’, v”, φ), Ta 6 (tc ’, tc”, p’, p”, u’, u”). Claws and empodium of same shape as on tarsus II. Seta v’ of tibia weakly barbed; setae tc ” and p” blunt-ended. Leg IV ( Fig. 39 B). Leg setation: Tr 0, Fe 1/2 (d, v’, ev’), Ge 2 (d, v’), Ti 3 (d, v’, v”), Ta 5 (p’, p”, tc, u’, u”). Seta v’ of tibia weakly barbed; setae tc and (p) blunt-ended.

MALE, LARVA, PROTONYMPH, DEUTONYMPH and TRITONYMPH unknown.

Material examined. One female, RUSSIA, Crimea , Sudak, settl. Uyutnoye, 1 January 1972, coll. A.P. Khaustov.

Remarks. Kuznetsov (1973) provided a redescription of Tanytydeus cristatus Theron et al., 1969 based on specimens collected in Crimea. He also noticed that specimens from Crimea differed from the original description of T. cristatus by having 8 (vs. 9) setae on femur I, 2 (vs. 3) setae on femur II and a different number of genital setae. My study of the specimen from Kuznetsov’s collection revealed that it represents another species, closely related and probably conspecific to T. aegypticus Soliman, 1974 . Unfortunately, the original description of T. aegyptiacus lacks many important characters, including leg setation, but the female has the same number of genital and aggenital setae and genital acetabulae as the specimen from Crimea. Another poorly described species, T. neocristatus Kandeel and Hoda, 1984 , is very similar to T. aegypticus , but it is characterized by the triangular prodorsal plate.

Khanjani et al. (2014a) considered species previously placed in the genus Hexatydeus as deuto- or tritonymphs of Tanytydeus species. In my opinion, at least Tanytydeus cf. aegyptiacus is an adult female with three pairs of aggenital and two pairs of genital setae. The evidence of adult stage is the presence of three pairs of setae k, presence of setae 4 b (absent in most known deutonymphs) and the long genital opening, which almost connected with the anal opening.

Figures

FIGURE 37. Tanytydeus cf. aegypticus (Soliman, 1974), female: A—body in dorsal view, B—body in ventral view.

FIGURE 38. Tanytydeus cf. aegypticus (Soliman, 1974), female: leg I in dorsal view, B—leg II in dorsal view.

FIGURE 39. Tanytydeus cf. aegypticus (Soliman, 1974), female: leg III in dorsal view, B—leg IV in dorsal view.