Abstract
ABSTRACT: The diversity of edaphic mites in Brazilian natural environments is little known, especially in the Pampa biome, in southern region of Brazil. The objective of this study was to evaluate the diversity and abundance of edaphic fauna of mesostigmatid mites in a region of the Pampa biome of the state of Rio Grande do Sul. Soil samples were collected in the municipality of Aceguá, in 2012 and 2013. Mites were extracted using Berlese-Tullgren modified funnels. In total, 1900 mesostigmatid mites were collected, representing 44 species from 23 genera and 10 families. The most abundant families were Rhodacaridae, Ologamasidae and Laelapidae, with respectively 903, 578 and 214 specimens, corresponding respectively to 47.5, 30.4 and 11.3% of the Mesostigmata collected. Laelapidae was the most diverse family, being represented by 22 species. The remaining families were each represented by 1-5 species. Gaeolaelaps (Laelapidae) was the most diverse genus, with 14 species. Rhodacaridae was represented by a single species, Binodacarus aceguaensis Duarte, Castilho, Cunha & Moraes, representing 47.5% of the mesostigmatids. Ologamasidae was represented by four species, with Neogamasellevans sp. corresponding to the second most abundant species, representing 27.5% of the mesostigmatids. Further analysis of the data, in terms of mite identification to species level and the potential use of the mites collected for applied biological control are needed.
Highlights
Despite the ecological singularity of southern Brazil in relation to other parts of the country, biodiversity in this region is still poorly known (BENCKE, 2009), especially in relation to the edaphic fauna
The number of mesostigmatid mites collected in the wet season was 2.1 times larger than the number collected in dry season
The prevailing climatic conditions and vegetation coverage of the Pampa biome initially suggested mite diversity to be relatively low in the research site, in comparison with other parts of the country, where temperature is higher, and where the natural vegetation is often more luxurious
Summary
Despite the ecological singularity of southern Brazil in relation to other parts of the country, biodiversity in this region is still poorly known (BENCKE, 2009), especially in relation to the edaphic fauna. Mites are very diverse in the soil, especially in less disturbed habitats (KRANTZ & WALTER 2009) Knowledge about their identify and behavior is important, for the evaluation of soil quality and for knowledge of the dynamics of production systems In Brazil, studies about the diversity of mesostigmatid mites have been conducted, mostly in the southeast (MINEIRO et al, 2009; MINEIRO & MORAES, 2001; SILVA et al, 2004) and northeast (SANTOS, 2013). In these studies, the authors reported high mite diversity and abundance. In the Atlantic Forest and Cerrado biomes of São Paulo State, Neogamasellevans was the most common genus (SILVA et al, 2004)
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