Palaeacaridae

Palaeacarus hystricinus, copyright Zoë Lindo.

Belongs within: Sarcoptiformes.

The Palaeacaridae are a small group of relatively soft-bodied oribatid mites known from the Holarctic region and western Australia (Norton & Behan-Pelletier 2009).

Characters (from Norton & Behan-Pelletier 2009): Naso absent. Bothridial seta filiform. Larger exobothridial seta xa situated anterior to other seta xp and usually about half length of seta in. Chelicerae chelate-dentate, oriented obliquely, anteroventrally; digits not narrowed. Anterior adoral seta or1 simple, smaller than others. Subcapitulum without unpaired ventral lip. Palptarsus elongated, at least twice tibial length; distal eupathidia barbed. Hysterosoma moderately elongated with large aesthenic zone. Opisthonotum with distinct pygidial shield bearing all setae posterior to row e. Several pairs of opisthonotal setae large, darkly pigmented, with d2 and e1 largest, erectile; h1 and p1 unusually short, swollen, or spinelike. Cupules present. Most anterior pair of genital setae strongly modified. All genital papillae of normal size. Pretarsi of all legs bidactylous. Famulus of tarsus I large, approximately equal in length to solenidia or only slightly shorter; inserted on conspicuous tubercle in proximal quarter or third of tarsus. Tibia II with one solenidion.

Palaeacaridae [Palaeacaroidea]
    |--Palaeacaroides Lange 1972 S04
    |    `--*P. pacificus Lange 1972 S04
    `--Palaeacarus Trägardh 1932 [incl. Traegardhacarus Zachvatkin 1945] S04
         |--*P. hystricinus Trägardh 1932 S04
         |    |--P. h. hystricinus [incl. P. appalachicus Jacot 1938] S04
         |    `--P. h. japonicus Aoki 1980 S04
         |--P. caucasicus Lange 1972 S04
         |--P. kamenskii (Zachvatkin 1945) (see below for synonymy) S04
         |--P. lapshovi Zachvatkin 1945 S04
         `--P. orientalis Bulanova-Zachvatkina 1967 S04

Palaeacarus kamenskii (Zachvatkin 1945) [=Traegardhacarus kamenskii; incl. P. hystricinus vaesterbottensis Grandjean 1954] S04

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

Norton, R. A., & V. M. Behan-Pelletier. 2009. Suborder Oribatida. In: Krantz, G. W., & D. E. Walter (eds) A Manual of Acarology 3rd ed. pp. 430–564. Texas Tech University Press.

[S04] Subías, L. S. 2004. Listado sistemático, sinonímico y biogeográfico de los ácaros oribátidos (Acariformes, Oribatida) del mundo (1758–2002). Graellsia 60 (número extraordinario): 3–305.