Abstract
An extensive survey of small mammals and ectoparasites along an altitudinal transect in the Manu Biodiversity Reserve in Peru found the sigmodontine rodent genus Nephelomys infested by mites of the genus Gigantolaelaps Fonseca, 1939. Two distinct species co-occurred exclusively in the pelage of Nephelomys keaysi, G. inca Fonseca and G. minima n. sp. Nephelomys levipes, which replaces N. keaysi at higher elevations, was infested exclusively with a single new species, G. nebulosa n. sp. In this paper, we formally describe these new mite species, and provide more information on the morphology of G. inca.
Highlights
The genus Gigantolaelaps Fonseca, 1939 is comprised of a group of large ectoparasitic mites infesting New World rodents of the sigmodontine tribe Oryzomyini
Genus Gigantolaelaps based exclusively on the female stase as very large mites with idiosoma well over 1000 μm; sternal shield with anteromedial projection; epigynial shield bearing a single pair of strong setae, posterior seta of coxa II longer than homologous setae of other coxae; leg chaetotaxy as described by Evans and Till (1965) for free-living dermanyssoid mites, except for having 10 setae on genu IV and either 10 or 11 setae on tibia IV; stigmata without posterior plate extensions
Sternal shield without accessory setae. This new species can be differentiated from co-associated G. inca by body size and dorsal setation
Summary
The genus Gigantolaelaps Fonseca, 1939 is comprised of a group of large ectoparasitic mites infesting New World rodents of the sigmodontine tribe Oryzomyini. Their mammalian hosts are primarily neotropical, with the exception of a single species, which ranges into the southeastern United States. ISSN 2107-7207 (electronic) genus Gigantolaelaps based exclusively on the female stase (males are rare in collections) as very large mites with idiosoma well over 1000 μm; sternal shield with anteromedial projection; epigynial shield bearing a single pair of strong setae, posterior seta of coxa II longer than homologous setae of other coxae; leg chaetotaxy as described by Evans and Till (1965) for free-living dermanyssoid mites, except for having 10 setae on genu IV and either 10 or 11 setae on tibia IV; stigmata without posterior plate extensions ( when carefully dissected, a weakly sclerotized plate is evident; see Fig. 1B, 2B).
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