Mideopsis milankovici sp. nov. a new water mite from Montenegro based on morphological and molecular data (Acariformes, Hydrachnidia, Mideopsidae)

Vladimir Pešić,Harry Smit

doi:10.24349/acarologia/20204387

Vladimir Pešić, Harry Smit

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.24349/acarologia/20204387

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Abstract

Water mite species of the genus Mideopsis Neuman, 1880 are common in running and standing waters in the Palaearctic. In the present study we used an integrative taxonomic approach by applying partial COI sequences (DNA-barcodes) and morphological characteristics to describe a new species, Mideopsis milankovici sp. nov. from the Mediterranean region of Montenegro. A high genetic distance (18.8-26% K2P) from three other known European congeners, M. crassipes Soar, 1904, M. orbicularis (Müller, 1776), and M. roztoczensis Biesiadka and Kowalik, 1979, support M. milankovici sp. nov. as a distinct species. From M. persicus Pešić and Saboori, 2015, a species known from South Iran, which resembles the new species in the shape of the ejaculatory complex, M. milankovici sp. nov. differs by the morphology of dorsal shield.

Highlights

Water mites of the genus Mideopsis Neuman, 1880 are known from the Holarctic and Neotropical regions (Cook 1974; Pešić et al 2013)
The nucleotide sequences could be translated into amino acid sequences without any stop codons
The COI sequence found in the Mideopsis specimen collected in Montenegro was recovered as a sister clade of the clade formed by Mideopsis orbicularis and M. roztoczensis (Figure 1)

Summary

Introduction

Water mites of the genus Mideopsis Neuman, 1880 are known from the Holarctic and Neotropical regions (Cook 1974; Pešić et al 2013). A new water mite from Montenegro based on morphological and molecular data (Acariformes, Hydrachnidia, Mideopsidae). DNA was extracted from 16 specimens of the genus Mideopsis from Montenegro and The Netherlands (Table 1).

Results

Conclusion