Torrenticola comorosensis Pesic & Smit, n. sp.
Creators: name: Pešić, Vladimir
name: Smit, Harry
name: Mary, Nathalie
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2015
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Trombidiformes
Torrenticolidae
Torrenticola
Torrenticola comorosensis

description: Torrenticola comorosensis Pešić & Smit n. sp.
(Figs. 2A–F, 3A–D, 4A–F)
Synonymy. Torrenticola sp. Smit et al. (2010, p. 52, figs. 2A–D).
Type series. Holotype male (MNHN), dissected and slide mounted, Comoros, Mayotte, River Koualé tributary, 12°47'57,3"S, 45°09'51,2"E, 21-iv-2009, N. Mary. Paratypes (MNHN): one female, same data as holotype, dissected and slide mounted.
Other material. One female (RMNH), Comoros, Mayotte: Mro oua Dembeni (Dembeni River), downstream, 6-x-2008, leg. N. Mary-Sasal; described and illustrated by Smit et al. (2010) in fig. 2 as Torrenticola sp., dissected and slide mounted.
Diagnosis. Idiosoma elongated-oval (dorsal shield L/W ratio 1.3); Cxgl–4 subapical, only slightly posterior of Cx-I tips; excretory pore embedded in the area of primary sclerotization; P-2 ventrodistal protrusion slender, spatula-shaped. Male: medial suture line of Cx-II+III short.
Description. General features —Idiosoma elongated-oval; gnathosomal bay U-shaped, proximally rounded; Cxgl–4 subapical, only slightly posterior of Cx-I tips; suture line of Cx-IV distinct, extending posteriorly beyond posterior margin of genital field; excretory pore in a medioposterior indentation of primary sclerotization, Vgl–2 posterior to excretory pore (Figs. 2B, 4B); gnathosoma proximally higher, ventral margin strongly curved, rostrum mid-sized (Fig. 2D); P-2 ventral margin slightly curved, ventrodistal protrusion slender, spatula-shaped, distally finely serrate; ventrodistal projection at P-3 irregularly cone-shaped, anterior margin frayed; P-4 relatively short, dorsal margin weakly curved, with ventral tubercles pointed and separated, bearing one long and three short setae (Figs. 2E, F, 4F). Male: medial suture line of Cx-II+III short; genital field rectangular in shape; ejaculatory complex with small proximal chamber (Figs. 2C, 4C). Female: genital field pentagonal in shape (Figs. 3C, 4E).
Measurements. Male (holotype)—Idiosoma L 706, W 541; dorsal shield L 597, W 450, L/W ratio 1.32; dorsal plate L 540; shoulder platelet L 178–183, W 70–72, L/W ratio 2.5; frontal platelet L 128, W 69, L/W ratio 1.9; L shoulder/frontal platelet ratio 1.39–1.43. Gnathosomal bay L 147, Cx-I total L 267, Cx-I mL 120, Cx-II+III mL 85; ratio Cx-I L/Cx-II+III mL 3.1; Cx-I mL/Cx-II+III mL 1.4. Genital field L/W 147/125, ratio 1.18; ejaculatory complex L 219; distance genital field-excretory pore 130, genital field-caudal idiosoma margin 188. Gnathosoma vL 306; palp total L 312, dL/H, dL/H ratio: P-1, 37/31, 1.2; P-2, 100/52, 1.9; P-3, 60/44, 1.37; P-4, 95/26, 3.6; P-5, 20/12, 1.6; L P-2/P-4 ratio 1.05.
Female (paratype)—Idiosoma L 763, W 563; dorsal shield L 631, W 481, L/W ratio 1.31; dorsal plate L 583; shoulder platelet L 100, W 77–78, L/W ratio 1.28–1.31; frontal platelet L 122–128, W 69–70, L/W ratio 1.77–1.82; L shoulder/frontal platelet ratio 0.78–0.82. Gnathosomal bay L 161, Cx-I total L 285, Cx-I mL 124, Cx-II+III mL 48; ratio Cx-I L/Cx-II+III mL 5.9; Cx-I mL/Cx-II+III mL 2.6. Genital field L/W 161/143, ratio 1.12; distance genital field-excretory pore 184, genital field-caudal idiosoma margin 253. Gnathosoma vL 327; chelicera total L 388; palp total L 332–333, dL/H, dL/H ratio: P-1, 38–39/31, 1.24; P-2, 110/55, 2.0; P-3, 65/44, 1.46; P-4, 100/27, 3.72; P-5, 19/12, 1.54; L P-2/P-4 ratio 1.1.
Etymology. Named after the archipelogo (Comoros) where the new species was found.
Remarks. Smit et al. (2010) collected a single female from Dembeni River (Mayotte) and mentioned that most probably this specimen represents a species new to science. This specimen is in perfect agreement with specimens examined in our study. In the description of a female specimen from Dembeni River (here assigned to a new species T. comorosensis) Smit et al. (2010) mentioned similarity in the shape of gnathosoma and palp (ventral protrusion at P-2 spatula-shaped) with T. spatulifera Goldschmidt & Smit, 2009, a species known from South Africa (Goldschmidt & Smit 2009). The latter species can easily be separated from T. comorosensis n. sp. due to the Cxgl–4 shifted more posteriorly, between tips of Cx-I, and and insertion of leg-I, the shorter ventral seta on P-2 and the excretory pore lying posterior to caudal margin of primary sclerotization.
Distribution. Comoros (Mayotte).
description: Published as part of Pešić, Vladimir, Smit, Harry & Mary, Nathalie, 2015, Third contribution to the knowledge of water mites from the Comoros, with the description of two new species (Acari: Hydrachnidia), pp. 445-459 in Zootaxa 3964 (4) on pages 447-451, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3964.4.4, http://zenodo.org/record/237029