Before the summer turns to winter: the third labidostommatid genus from Baltic amber has subtropical kin

M Bertrand,C Hoffeins,E Sidorchuk

doi:10.1051/acarologia/20152170

Abstract

Following the discovery of the genera Labidostomma and Sellnickiella in Paleogene amber, a fossil of the genus Eunicolina was found for the first time in a piece of Baltic amber from the Hoffeins collection. The genus is known by four extant species: three European and one American. Eunicolina is distinguished notably by the multiplication of the pustules around the posterior part of the dorsal shield. The presence of this genus in Baltic amber confirmed that the family was represented in the early Cenozoic by genera whose members are presently confined to rather warm or cool, or Mediterranean climatic conditions, either in the South or in the North hemisphere, or cosmopolitan. The past and present distributions of the labidostommatid genera known from Baltic amber are discussed with respect to environmental changes. A key for orienting the identification of the genera and subgenera of Labidistommatidae is provided, including the fossil species.

Highlights

Fossil record of edaphic predatory mites is rather impressive, with about 20 valid species of Parasitiformes and more than 250 species of Acariformes (Dunlop et al 2015)
Jor groups of Acari, Labidostommatidae have probably existed well before the major adaptive breakthrough that had happened between the late Mesozoic and Cenozoic, from 60 to 100 Ma (Krantz 2009)
Less than twenty fossil labidostommatid specimens are identified from European Eocene amber

Summary

Introduction

Fossil record of edaphic predatory mites is rather impressive, with about 20 valid species of Parasitiformes and more than 250 species of Acariformes (Dunlop et al 2015). Of the latter, the fossil representatives of the family Labidostommatidae may help to understand the historical biogeography of this group. As most of the mahttp://www1.montpellier.inra.fr/CBGP/acarologia/ ISSN 0044-586-X (print). ISSN 2107-7207 (electronic) jor groups of Acari, Labidostommatidae have probably existed well before the major adaptive breakthrough that had happened between the late Mesozoic and Cenozoic, from 60 to 100 Ma (Krantz 2009). Sellnickiella Feider & Vasiliu, 1969 (with one species) and Labidostomma Kramer, 1879 are known from Baltic amber, and one unidentified member of the family–from Ukrainian amber (Sellnick 1931a; Dunlop and Bertrand 2011; Sidorchuk and Bertrand 2013, Dunlop et al 2015)

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Conclusion