Neoatractides (Allotorrenticola) erato Pešić & Smit, 2014, n. sp.
Creators: name: Pešić, Vladimir
name: Smit, Harry
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2014
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Trombidiformes
Torrenticolidae
Neoatractides
Neoatractides erato

description: Neoatractides (Allotorrenticola) erato n. sp.
(Figs. 11A–F, 12I, 14I)
Type series. Holotype male, dissected and slide mounted, Ghana, small rainforest stream upstream Sagyimase, Atewa Hills, 6º 13.964 N, 0º 33.116 W, alt. 654 m asl., 8.iii.2011, Smit.
Diagnosis. Shoulder platelets fused to the large dorsal plate; medial suture line of Cx-II+III relatively long; P- 1 separate from P-2, P-3 slightly longer than P-4, P-2 and -3 each with relatively short and slender ventral seta but without ventral projections; gnathosoma with conspicuous oral papillae sensu Wiles (1997); chelicera with relatively long cheliceral claw (L basal segment/claw ratio 2.6).
Description. Male. General features —Shoulder platelets fused to the large dorsal plate (Figs. 11A, 12I); Cxgl- 4 far posterior at margin of Cx-I/II, near I-L insertions; medial suture line of Cx-II+III relatively long; posterior suture line of Cx-IV distinct, medially starting from posterior margin of genital field in a right angle to the main idiosoma axis (Fig. 11B); genital field subrectangular in shape; ejaculatory complex as illustrated in Fig. 11E; excretory pore and Vgl-1 away from line of primary sclerotizaztion; P-1 separate from P-2, P-2 relatively long, P-3 slightly longer than P-4, P-2 and -3 each with relatively short and slender ventral seta but without ventral projections (Fig. 11C). Gnathosoma with conspicuous oral papillae and short posterodorsal projections, rostrum narrower than remainder of the gnathosoma (Fig. 11D); chelicera long with relatively long cheliceral claw (L basal segment/claw ratio 2.6).
Measurements. Idiosoma (ventral view: Figs. 11A, 14I) L 603, W 415, dorsal shield (Figs. 11A, 12I) L 475, W 373, L/W ratio 1.2; frontal platelets L 162–163, W 51, L/W ratio 3.2; gnathosomal bay L 113, Cx-I total L 238, Cx- I mL 125, Cx-II+III mL 112; ratio Cx-I L/Cx-II+III mL 2.1; Cx-I mL/Cx-II+III mL 1.1; genital field L/W 142/114, ratio 1.24; ejaculatory complex L 222; distance genital field-excretory pore 77; genital field-caudal idiosoma margin 109; gnathosoma vL 270; chelicera total L 354, claw L 101, basal segment L 260, L basal segment/claw ratio 2.6; palp: total L 194, dL/H, dL/H ratio: P-1, 35/29, 1.21; P-2, 74/38–39, 1.92; P-3, 37/35, 1.07; P-4, 35/ 23–24, 1.51; P-5, 13/12, 1.02; P-2/P-4 ratio 2.09; dL of I-L-2–6 (Fig.): 68, 75, 82, 92, 98–99; I-L-6 H 40, dL/H I- L-6 ratio 2.46.
Etymology. The species is named after Erato (Ancient Greek: Ἐρατώ), one of nine Muses from Greek mythology, who was a patron of erotic poetry and song. The species name is a noun in apposition (in the nominative case).
Discussion. Neoatractides erato n. sp. is the only representative of the subgenus Allotorrenticol a in Africa. The finger-like gnathosomal rostrum, P-3 without indentation of dorsal margin and the tick apical setae on P-4 are diagnostic for the subgenus (Wiles 1997). Until now the subgenus has been known only from Asia (Wiles 1997) and includes five species, i.e., Neoatractides abnormipalpis (Lundblad, 1941) (Burma, Malaysia, Brunei; Wiles 1997), N. bahtilli (Wiles, 1991) (Malaysia, Thailand; Wiles 1997, Pešić & Smit 2009), N. malayensis (Wiles, 1991) (Malaysia, Thailand; Wiles 1997, Pešić & Smit 2009), N. suvarna (Cook, 1967) (India, Cook 1967) and N. calidus Pešić, Smit & Saboori, 2012 (South Iran, Pešić et al. 2012a). Due to the absence of projections on P-2 and P-3, the male of the new species resembles N. abnormipalpis and N. calidus. From both species, Neoatractides erato n. sp. differs in the shoulder platelets fused to the large dorsal plate. Neoatractides abnormipalpis can easily be distinguished by P-1 partially fused with P-2 and in a very reduced P-4 (shorter than P-3) and P-5 (see Wiles 1991). Neoatractides calidus (in parentheses data taken from Pešić et al. 2012a) differs in the gnathosoma with inconspicuous oral papillae, a longer ventral seta on P-2 and P-3, chelicera with a relatively much shorter cheliceral claw (basal segment/claw ratio 4.3), a shorter medial suture of Cx-II+III (62 μm), a smaller genital field, Cx-IV posteriorly extending well beyond genital field and excretory pore and Vgl-2 on the margin of primary sclerotization shifted to posterior margin of idiosoma (see Pešić et al. 2012a).
Habitat. A sandy/bouldary stream, shaded by rain forest.
Distribution. Ghana; known only from the locus typicus.
description: Published as part of Pešić, Vladimir & Smit, Harry, 2014, Torrenticolid water mites (Acari: Hydrachnidia: Torrenticolidae) from Ghana, pp. 1-80 in Zootaxa 3820 (1) on pages 24-27, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3820.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/286303