Trouessartia Canestrini, 1899

Mironov, Sergey V. & Chandler, C. Ray, 2020, Feather mites of the genus Trouessartia (Acariformes: Trouessartiidae) from passerines (Aves: Passeriformes) in Georgia, USA, Zootaxa 4860 (1), pp. 1-54 : 4

Genus Trouessartia Canestrini, 1899

Type species: Dermaleichus corvinus Koch, 1841 , by subsequent designation.

Of the 128 known species of the genus Trouessartia , 59 species are referred to ten currently recognized species groups ( Santana 1976, Mironov & Kopij 2000; Mironov & Bermúdez 2017; Mironov & Galloway 2019). Each group is characterized by the specific combination of characters shared by its members, although the set and number of used characters do not match among different groups.

All ten new Trouessartia species described below and six previously described species ( Till 1953; Berla 1959a, 1959b; OConnor et al. 2005; Hernandes 2014) are arranged into a new species group capensis . This group can be characterized by the following combination of characters differentiating it from other representatives of the genus. In both sexes, the prodorsal shield is separated from the scapular shields, setae c2 are long spiculiform, dorsal setae d2 and e2 are always present, dorsal hysterosomal apertures ( DHA) are absent, trochanteral setae sR III are narrowly lanceolate ( Figs. 1A , 2A , 3E ); in males, the hysteronotal shield is completely split into the prohysteronotal and lobar parts, the opisthosoma is attenuate posteriorly and the opisthosomal lobes except distal ends are fused to each other at midline forming an interlobar septum, the terminal lamellae are generally semi-ovate in form and have smooth margins, the postgenital plaque (the area posterior to the genital apparatus marked by semicircular or trapezoidal cuticular fold) is present, genital setae g are variable in shape (usually long) and with well developed cylindrical basal ring, the adanal apodemes bear apophyses usually represented by longitudinal ridges, and the translobar apodeme is present ( Figs. 1 , 4A ); in females, the external copulatory tube is present, usually shaped as a stylet or finger situated on the free margin of interlobar membrane, setae h1 are narrowly lanceolate (rarely setiform), and the head of spermatheca has a semi-ovate extension without indentations on its margin ( Figs. 4B, C , 7F , 10F ). Two subgroups can be recognized within the capensis group: with and without dorsal setae d 1 in both sexes.

Included species: Trouessartia americana sp. n., T. capensis Berla, 1959 , T. ciris sp. n., T. basileuteri Hernandes, 2014 , T. geospiza OConnor, Foufopoulos and Lipton, 2005, T. helmitheros sp. n., T. mangaratibensis Berla, 1959 , T. mniotilta sp. n., T. mossambicensis Till, 1953 , T. passerinae sp. n., T. pensylvanica sp. n., T. ruticilla sp. n., T. seiurus sp. n., T. sicaliae Hernandes, 2014 , T. spizellae sp. n., and T. tigrina sp. n. ( Table 1 ). It is quite possible that two more species known from tanagers ( Thraupidae ), T. megaplax Černý and Lukoschus, 1975 , and T. unciseta Černý and Lukoschus, 1975 , which descriptions are incomplete and miss some important details, could also belong to the capensis species group.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Trouessartia passerinae sp. n., male. A—dorsal view, B—ventral view.

FIGURE 2. Trouessartia passerinae sp. n., female. A—dorsal view, B—ventral view.

FIGURE 3. Trouessartia passerinae sp. n., details. A–C—legs I–III of male, respectively, D—tibia and tarsus IV of male, E—setae si, c2, c3 and sRIII of male, F, G— tibia and tarsus IV of female, respectively.

FIGURE 4. Trouessartia species, details. A—Trouessartia passerinae sp. n., opisthosoma and genital apparatus of male, ventral view, B—same, spermatheca and spermaducts, C—same, opisthosoma of female, dorsal view, D—T. capensis Berla, 1959, opisthosoma of female, dorsal view, D—T. geospiza OConnor et al. 2005, opisthosoma of female, dorsal view. Abbreviations: ae—aedeagus, ad—adanal shield, ap—apophysis of adanal apodeme, bs—basal sclerite, ea—epiandrum, bg—basal guide of external copulatory tube, gs—genital shield, hs—head of spermatheca, eh—peak-like extension of spermathecal head, pg—primary spermaduct guide, pp—postgenital plaque, pd—primary spermaduct, pm—paramere, sd—secondary spermaducts, tatranslobar apodeme, tl—terminal lamella.

FIGURE 7. Trouessartia ciris sp. n., details. A, B—genu, tibia and tarsus I, II of male, respectively, C—tibia and tarsus IV of male, D—setae si, c2, c3 and sRIII of male, E—spermatheca and spermaducts, F—opisthosoma of female, dorsal view, G—opisthosoma and genital apparatus of male, ventral view.

FIGURE 10. Trouessartia spizellae sp. n., details. A, B—genu, tibia and tarsus I, II of male, respectively, C—tibia and tarsus IV of male, D—setae si, c2, c3 and sRIII of male, E—spermatheca and spermaducts, F—opisthosoma of female, dorsal view, G—opisthosoma and genital apparatus of male, ventral view.