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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » Systematic Entomology Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #313730
Title: Reinstatement of the genus Colopalpus Pritchard and Baker (1958) and re-description of Colopalpus matthyssei Pritchard and Baker (1958), the type species of this genus (Acari, Tenuipalpidae)

Author
item CASTRO, E. - University Of Brazil
item Ochoa, Ronald - Ron
item FERES, R. - Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP)
item BEARD, J. - University Of Maryland
item BAUCHAN, G. - US Department Of Agriculture (USDA)

Submitted to: International Journal of Acarology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/2/2015
Publication Date: 4/1/2015
Citation: Castro, E., Ochoa, R., Feres, R.J., Beard, J.J., Bauchan, G.R. 2015. Reinstatement of the genus Colopalpus Pritchard and Baker (1958) and re-description of Colopalpus matthyssei Pritchard and Baker (1958), the type species of this genus (Acari, Tenuipalpidae). International Journal of Acarology. 41:310-328.

Interpretive Summary: Tenuipalpus Donnadieu is a flat mite genus with over 300 described species. All flat mites are plant feeders, many of them affecting important economic ornamental plants, timber and commercial trees. The descriptions of many of these flat mites are incomplete, and lack important information necessary for accurate species identification. The objective of this study was to re-evaluated the genus Tenuipalpus. The majority of the specimens examined in the study are deposited in the Smithsonian USNM Insect & Mite Collection, which included species described from around the world. Phase Contrast, Differential Interference Contrast and Low Temperature Scanning Electron Microscopy (LT-SEM) techniques were used to analyze and identify new morphological characters of the different variations in the genus. We determined that Colopalpus is a valid flat mite genus and does not belong to the Tenuipalpus genus. We studied the type species of the genus Colopalpus, and identified other species that belongs to this group. This information will be used by scientists to make comparative studies of mites related to this species as well as border control agents for identification of invasive species to protect our U.S. agriculture.

Technical Abstract: Pritchard and Baker (1958) erected the genus Colopalpus with Tenuipalpus matthyssei (Pritchard and Baker) a species described from Laguna, The Philippines, as the type species. Meyer (1979) treated the genus as a junior synonym of Tenuipalpus Donnadieu. In this paper, we re-describe the female, male and deutonymph of T. matthyssei with additional data (e.g. leg chaetotaxy and setal measurements), based on type specimens deposited in the USNM. Complementary information on the morphology of T. nambii Castro and Feres using low temperature scanning electron microscopy (LT-SEM) is provided. Results showed that T. matthyssei and T. nambii share characters with both the genera Tenuipalpus and Brevipalpus. Based on these findings, we propose that Colopalpus be reinstated as a valid genus. We discuss the characters shared between Colopalpus, Tenuipalpus and Brevipalpus, and provide a list of species that are transferred to the genus Colopalpus.