<p class="Body"><strong>Molecular and ontogeny studies clarify systematic status of <em>Chamobates borealis </em>(Acari, Oribatida, Chamobatidae): an integrated taxonomy approach</strong></p>

Abstract

Chamobates borealis (Trägårdh 1902) has been considered by some authors as a junior synonym of Chamobates pusillus (Berlese 1895). In this study we used an integrated taxonomy approach, comparing mitochondrial coding gene COI and morphological ontogeny of these species to clarify their systematic status. The Bayesian inference tree based on COI sequences of C. borealis and C. pusillus, as well as C. birulai (Kulczyński 1902), C. bispinosus Mahunka, 1987, C. cuspidatus (Michael 1884) and C. rastratus (Hull 1914) separated all these species. In terms of the morphology, the adults of C. borealis and C. pusillus have similar body size and shape, thin aggenital setae and two lateral teeth on the rostrum, but C. borealis has the medial incision between these teeth, which is absent in C. pusillus. The adults of these species differ also from each other by the shape of bothridial setae, size of area porose Aa, location of seta lm and lyrifissure im, and the shape of most setae on the hysterosoma. The morphological ontogeny of these species is similar, but the larva and nymphs of C. borealis differ from those of C. pusillus by the length of some prodorsal and gastronotal setae, and the nymphs of C. borealis have a humeral organ, which is absent in C. pusillus. The presence of a humeral organ in some Chamobates species supports a clade inferred by COI sequence data.