The soil and moss dwelling oribatid mite family Scutoverticidae is considered to represent an assemblage of distantly related but morphologically similar genera. We used nucleotide sequences of one mitochondrial (COI) and two nuclear (28S rDNA, ef-1alpha) genes, and 79 morphological characters to elucidate the phylogenetic relationships among 11 nominal plus two undescribed ...

... of ptyctimous mites (Acari: Oribatida) are recorded from Ghana for the first time. Two new species are ... 22, 2008Keywords: Acari, Oribatida, Phthiracaridae, Steganacaridae, new species, Ghana INTRODUCTI...

BackgroundThe use of molecular genetic data in phylogenetic systematics has revolutionized this field of research in that several taxonomic groupings defined by traditional taxonomic approaches have been rejected by molecular data. The taxonomic classification of the oribatid mite group Circumdehiscentiae ("Higher Oribatida") is largely based on morphological characters and ...

... minutissimus (Berlese, 1904) and Hypochthonius rufulus C. L. Koch, 1835 (Acari: Oribatida: Hypochthonioidea)Stanis�aw Seniczak1, Roy A. ... and successive nymphs of Hypochthonius rufulus C. L. Koch, 1835,...

... diversity and community structure of two groups of mites (Oribatida and Gamasida). The effects of tillage, herbicide ... effects on the abundance and diversity of soil mites during the first year of the e...

... of Edwardzetes (Acari, Oribatida, Ceratozetidae) from Biscay (The Basque Country, Northern Spain)Juan Carlos Iturrondobeitia,* and Ana ... described from the province of Biscay in the Basque Country, Nort...

... of Corynoppia (Acari, Oribatida, Oppiidae) from Biscay (The Basque Country, Northern Spain)Juan Carlos Iturrondobeitia,* and Marta ... described from the province of Biscay in the Basque Country, Northern...

... Mites (Acari) and flies (Insecta: Diptera) from natural edible mushrooms (Morchella : Ascomycetes) in Ankara, Turkey. Bull Annls Soc ... ...

... rambler.ru 3 Laboratory for Soil Zoology and General Entomology, Institute of Ecological and Evolutionary Problems, Russian Academy ... ...

... Ozkan (Uludag University, Turkey) and Assist. Prof. S. Baran (Atatürk University, Turkey) for their assistance and suggestions ... ...

... The hydrocarbons are considered to origin in a lipid layer which is covering the cuticle: this layer ... Accepted: March 17, 2008Keywords: Cerotegument, Collohmannia, Hermannia, hydrocarbons, lipid layer,...

... Acari, Oribatida) from Dominican Amber, Aided by Synchrotron X-ray MicrotomographyMichael Heethoffa, Lukas Helfenb, Roy A. Nortonc aUniversität ... on two adult specimens, incorporating images from synchr...

... from Turkey (Ayyıldız 1989; �obanoglu and Bayram, 1998; Baran and Ayyıldız 2004; Toluk and Ayyıldız, 2008). The ... Acta Zoologica Academia Scientiarum Hungaricae 29: 1�79. Baran, �. and N. Ayyıldız. 2004...

... Leg I, right, antiaxial view; (34) leg IV, left, antiaxial view. Ti, Ge � ... his thorough review of this manuscript and many valuable suggestions. The ... ...

... For example, suspended canopy soils in temperate and tropical rainforests are habitats of accumulated organic matter (Moffett, 2000) ... dwelling microarthropods along an altitudinal gradient in a tropica...

- entiation-associated surface antigen variation in the ancient eukaryote Giardia lamblia. Mol Microbiol 30,41]; Giardia express only one of 30 to 150 variant- specific surface protein genes [41,42]; ciliates also

... Abstract. Juvenile stages of Punctoribates punctum (C. L. Koch, 1839) and P. hexagonus Berlese, 1908 are redescribed, ... P. hexagonus Berlese, 1908, P. punctum (C. L. Koch, 1839), P. sellnicki], but in ...

... typical to juveniles of the other oribatid mites (Krantz 1978, Travé and Vachon 1975,Weigmann 2006, Seniczak ... the Netherlands. Zoologische Verhandelingen, Leiden, 17: 1�139. Krantz, G. W. and G. T. Bak...

... Principal Components Analysis (PCA) and Discriminant Function Analysis (DFA). PCA and DFA were conducted on the 10 most abundant species ... to maximise variation within the data set, whereas DFA results ...

An exposure chamber for studying the effects of air pollution on microarthropods is described. The chamber was tested on a corticolous mite, Humerobates rostrolamellatus Grandjean (Acari: Oribatida). In the absence of pollutants, the overall mortality was about 2.5%.

... Biosphere Research Center, University of the Ryukyus, Taketomi, Okinawa 907-1541, Japan 2Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, ... NSMT); the University Museum, University of the Ryukyus, Okinawa, Japan ...

... Fig. 5). Porose area Al longitudinally aligned with Aa and A2, such that distance seta lp - A1 > ... h3 (Fig. 53), or positioned more medially than Aa and A2, such that seta lp - A1 < A1 - ... ...

... and ips well developed; ia situated underneath humeral region, im anteriad of setae lp; ip posterolaterad of h1; ih and ips visible only in lateral view. ... ...

... prodorsum, dorsal view, (F) ventral view of opisthosoma. Table Mesotritia nova ... 747, width 424, hight 384; genital and aggenital plates 136�61; anal ... ...

... Ma�gorzata �ochy�ska2 and Ziemowit Olszanowski3 1Nizhniy Novgorod State Medical Academy, Department of Biology Rodionov 190 a, Nizhniy Novgorod 603126, Russia; e-mail: ErmilovAcari@yandex.ru 2, 3Department...

on the dynamics of microarthropod communities. #12;INDEX WORDS: Soil microarthropods, oribatids, collembola, mites, in particular the oribatid mites (Acari: Oribatida), are the most abundant and diverse animals living in soil Distribution of Soil Microarthropods Introduction Microarthropods, in particular the oribatid mites (Acari

In order to assess the relationship between the oppiid mite species (Acari, Oribatida) collected from Turkey, traditional and geometric morphometric methods were used. We have taken photographs of 128 specimens belonging to 11 species from six subfamilies of Oppiidae. These photographs were digitized and 17 interval measurements were taken for traditional ...

diversity': fungal feeders and saprophagous soil invertebrates prefer similar food substrates. Euro- pean) microphytophagous species that feed on fungi, pollen, algae, mosses and lichens and (3) non-specialized species not be correlated with the actual food substrate used and studies on gut enzymes may be misleading because enzyme

... contained within bothridia.Notogaster. Plate broadest between setae e2 and f2, surface smooth and shiny, with one ... long as c2, on tubercles. Setae c3 and e2 (length: 55�60 µm) set on large apophyses, ...

and at central and southern latitudes. Total oribatid number in deciduous forests was three-fold lower compared at various stages of decay in Douglas-fir, Grand-fir and Oak forests of northwestern US (deciduous forest of decay in Western Carpathians (deciduous forest zone). In the present study we also concentrated

... near Rocky Harbour, 29.vii.1976 (E.E.L.), 2 specimens from meadow�pasture turf. Remarks In North ... NW Oliver, 2�11.viii.1980 (E.E.L.), 2 from pit trap in sedge grass substrate by ... ...

to arboreal life in ori- batid mites (Oribatida, Acari), a group of mostly soil-living arthropods. We et al. 2003; Cianciolo & Norton 2006; Domes et al. 2007a). In soil, both oribatid mites with cuticles-bodied adults are virtually absent. Soil oribatid mites are characterized by a large and often ornamented

... setae lp longest in larva, setae c1, c2, h1 longest in nymphs; cornicle k of nymphs long, ... of setae: lp > dp > c1, c2, da > dm, h1 > la, lm, h2 > c3 > h3. Table 1. Comparison ... ...

... 1996; Niemi et al., 1997; Mahunka and Mahunka-Papp, 2000; Luxton, 1996; Subias, 2004; Miko, 2006; Baranowska, ... known (Marshall et al., 1987; Mahunka and Mahunka-Papp, 2000; Luxton, 1996; Subias, 2004; ...

and are even active in the Arctic and Antarctic regions. They occur in salt and fresh water, caves, rodent from quarantine interceptions (Hammer [365] and Woolley [870, 871, 874]) have been omitted. Also, p. 234); Eremobelba leporosus (Haller, 1884) (561, p. 611; 564, p. 35); Galumna flabellifera Hammer

in the Netherlands. Diversity of soil oribatid mites (Acari: Oribatida) from High Katanga (Democratic Republic. The diversity of oribatids (149 adult oribatid mite species) is analyzed for the first time in an African soil to control the soil mite richness in Katanga, ranging from the type of vegetation (forest, savanna) acting

Oribatida are one of the main groups of Acari comprising mostly important decomposers in soils. Most species are particle feeders, an exceptional mode of nutrition in Arachnida. Hence, their feeding organs, the gnathosoma, are of special functional interest. We studied nearly all components using scanning and transmission electron microscopies as well as ...

Sites of intracellular metal deposition in the midgut ventriculus and in the proventricular glands of Xenillus tegeocranus (Hermann, 1804) (Acari: Oribatida) were studied by TEM. The study aimed to obtain new information on the ultrastructural features of heavy metal compartmentalisation and elimination mechanisms in oribatid mites. Specimens of X. ...

Terrestrial fossils that document the early colonization of land are scarce for >100 my after the Cambrian explosion. This raises the question whether life on land did not exist or just did not fossilize. With a molecular dating technique, we analyzed the origin of terrestrial chelicerate microarthropods (Acari, Oribatida) which have a fossil record ...

... c1-d1115, d1-e1 130, e1-h1 115, h1-ps1 95; ventral region: ad1 68, ad2 65, ad3 68, ad4 75, ... d1 145, d1-e1 160, e1-h1 180, h1-ps1 105; ventral region: ad1 80, ad2 75, ad3 65, ad4 90; ... ...

Acariformes (one of the two main lineages of Acari) represent an exceptionally diverse group of Arachnida. We performed first comprehensive phylogenetic analysis of Acariformes using sequence data from the nuclear small subunit rRNA gene (18S rDNA) and the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI, amino acids). Our analyses confirm the monophyly of Acariformes and ...

Astigmata comprise a diverse group of acariform mite species with a remarkable range of life histories, most of which involve parasitic or commensal relationships with other organisms. Several authors have suggested that Astigmata evolved as a paedomorphic clade from within Oribatida, and both morphology and gland-chemistry strongly suggest that their sister-clade is within ...

Effects of sewage sludge on litter mesofauna communities (Collembola and Acari) and cork oak (Quercus suber L.) leaf litter decomposition have been studied during 18 mo using litterbags in an in situ experimental forest firebreak in southeastern France. The sludge (2.74 t DM ha(-1) yr(-1)) was applied to fertilize and maintain a pasture created on the firebreak. Litterbag ...

Theories on the evolution and maintenance of sex are challenged by the existence of ancient parthenogenetic lineages such as bdelloid rotifers and darwinulid ostracods. It has been proposed that several parthenogenetic and speciose taxa of oribatid mites (Acari) also have an ancient origin. We used nucleotide sequences of the mitochondrial gene cytochrome oxidase I to estimate ...

The mesofauna has an important function in the soil and it is represented mainly by Acari Oribatida and Collembola. We report the first data on the density and diversity of the soil mesofauna in Benjamin Constant, Amazonas State, Brazil. The following systems were evaluated: primary forest, secondary forest, agroforestry system, cultivated areas and ...

Insecticides derived from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) and plants genetically modified (GM) to express B. thuringiensis toxins are important alternatives for insect pest control worldwide. Risk assessment of B. thuringiensis toxins to non-target organisms has been extensively studied but few toxicological tests have considered soil invertebrates. Oribatid mites are one of the most ...

We investigated the holding and pulling forces generated by claws of the microarthropod Archegozetes longisetosus (Chelicerata, Acari, Oribatida) on three substrates with different roughness (R(a)=0.05 microm, 1 microm, 30 microm). Holding forces were measured perpendicular to the substrate using a strain gage force transducer; pulling forces were measured ...

Proteinase inhibitors (PI) are present in plant tissues, especially in seeds, and act as a defense mechanism against herbivores and pathogens. Serine PI from soybean such as Bowman-Birk (BBPI) and Kunitz have been used to enhance resistance of sugarcane varieties to the sugarcane borer Diatraea saccharalis (Fabricius) (Lepidoptera: Crambidae), the major pest of this crop. The use of these ...

BackgroundThere is a long-standing controversial about how parthenogenetic species can be defined in absence of a generally accepted species concept for this reproductive mode. An integrative approach was suggested, combining molecular and morphological data to identify distinct monophyletic entities. Using this approach, speciation of parthenogenetic lineages was recently demonstrated for groups ...

Although attention has been called to their presence as fossils in Quaternary lake and bog deposits a number of times, the moss mites (Arthropoda; Oribatida) have never been given serious attention during paleoecological work. This study is the first to demonstrate the quality and quantity of oribatid fossil material preserved in post-glacial lacustrine sediments. Oribatids ...

The chemical composition of secretions from opisthonotal (oil) glands in four species of the oribatid mite genus Oribotritia (Mixonomata, Euphthiracaroidea, Oribotritiidae) was compared by means of gas chromatography--mass spectrometry. The secretions of all, O. banksi (from North America) and three Austrian oribotritiids (O. berlesei, O. hermanni, O. storkani), are shown to be based on certain ...

The responses of oribatid communities to heavy metal contamination were studied. Concentration of cadmium, copper and zinc in nine oribatid species along a gradient of heavy metal pollution was measured. Oribatid mites were sampled seasonally during two years in five forests located at different distances from the zinc smelter in the Olkusz District, southern Poland. The most numerous and diverse ...

The moss cover of a roof was studied as the model of a simple habitat divided into microhabitats by the members of a community of saprophagous mites. This community consisted of two species of oribatid mites: Scutovertex minutus and Trichoribates trimaculatus. They were extracted from moss onto moist paper, and subsequently, their mobility, responses to moisture fluctuation, and food selection ...

Mites are involved in the decomposition of animal carcases and human corpses at every stage. From initial decay at the fresh stage until dry decomposition at the skeletal stage, a huge diversity of Acari, including members of the Mesostigmata, Prostigmata, Astigmata, Endeostigmata, Oribatida and Ixodida, are an integral part of the constantly changing food ...

BackgroundComplete mitochondrial (mt) genomes and the gene rearrangements therein are increasingly used as molecular markers for investigating phylogenetic relationships, especially for elucidating deep splits. Contributing to the complete mt genomes of arthropods, especially Arachnida, available so far, we provide the first complete mt genome of a sarcoptiform mite species, the sexually ...

Liacarus subterraneus is a large, soil-dwelling oribatid mite species that possesses a conspicuously shiny, clean and not wettable cuticular surface. The exocrine cuticular chemistry of this species was investigated by means of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Besides a fraction of hydrocarbons and a terpene, hexane extracts of whole mite bodies exhibited free carboxylic acids and their ...

The soil food web has been referred to as a 'black box', a 'poor man's tropical rainforest' and an 'enigma', due to its opacity, diversity and the limited insight into feeding specificity. Here we investigate the flow of C and N through the soil food web as a way to gain understanding of the feeding interactions occurring. A bacterium, Pseudomonas lurida, was introduced to soil cores from two ...

Oribatid mites (Acari, Oribatida) represent one of the most abundant and speciose groups of microarthropods in the decomposer food webs of soils, but little is known of their top-down regulation by predators. Oribatids are relatively long-lived and have numerous morphological defensive adaptations, and so have been proposed to live in 'enemy-free space'. ...

Small-scale spatial distribution of oribatid mites has been investigated in Amazonia. In addition, medium- and large-scale studies are needed to establish the utility of these mites in detecting natural environmental variability, and to distinguish this variability from anthropogenic impacts. We are expanding the knowledge about oribatid mites in a wet upland forest reserve, and investigate ...

Micro-arthropods in moss patches have been used as a model system to investigate the effects of habitat destruction and fragmentation on population viability and ecosystem functioning. Previous assessments of the sensitivity to fragmentation and the effectiveness of mitigating landscape structures have to some extent been contradictory, one possible reason being a lack of knowledge of the realised ...

The coexistence of a large number of soil animals without extensive niche differentiation is one of the great riddles in soil biology. The main aim of this study was to explore the importance of partitioning of food resources for the high diversity of micro-arthropods in soil. In addition, we investigated if ectomycorrhizal fungi are preferentially consumed compared to saprotrophic fungi. Until ...

Frequent convergent evolution in phylogenetically unrelated taxa points to the importance of ecological factors during evolution, whereas convergent evolution in closely related taxa indicates the importance of favourable pre-existing characters (pre-adaptations). We investigated the transitions to arboreal life in oribatid mites (Oribatida, Acari), a ...

Frequent convergent evolution in phylogenetically unrelated taxa points to the importance of ecological factors during evolution, whereas convergent evolution in closely related taxa indicates the importance of favourable pre-existing characters (pre-adaptations). We investigated the transitions to arboreal life in oribatid mites (Oribatida, Acari), a ...

We are summarizing the current state of knowledge of the diversity and distribution of oribatid mites in 26 environments in northern Brazil and of a rain forest in Peru. The published studies were mostly concentrated in Central Amazon. Only one report is a result from an agricultural polyculture. We are providing the first lists of species for savannas and for the Brazilian states of Roraima and ...

The community structure, stable isotope ratios ((15)N/(14)N, (13)C/(12)C) and reproductive mode of oribatid mites (Acari, Oribatida) were investigated in four habitats (upper tree bark, lower tree bark, dry grassland soil, forest soil) at two sites in the Central Alps (Tyrol, Austria). We hypothesized that community structure and trophic position of ...

The community structure, stable isotope ratios (¹⁵N/¹⁴N, ¹³C/¹²C) and reproductive mode of oribatid mites (Acari, Oribatida) were investigated in four habitats (upper tree bark, lower tree bark, dry grassland soil, forest soil) at two sites in the Central Alps ...

Predicting the effects of environmental changes on soil organic matter dynamics remains difficult. Here I explore the possibility that differences in decomposition and soil organic matter dynamics are due in part to links between litter decomposition processes, changes in litter chemistry, and variation in decomposer communities. I explored these relationships under three types of ecosystem ...