Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Aug 17;13(1):13392.
doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-40436-7.

World species of the subgenus Oligonychus (Reckiella) Tuttle and Baker (Acari, Prostigmata, Tetranychidae), diagnostic keys, taxonomic notes, and a new species

Hafiz Muhammad Saqib Mushtaq  1 , Muhammad Kamran  1 , Fahad Jaber Alatawi  2
Affiliations

World species of the subgenus Oligonychus (Reckiella) Tuttle and Baker (Acari, Prostigmata, Tetranychidae), diagnostic keys, taxonomic notes, and a new species

Hafiz Muhammad Saqib Mushtaq et al. Sci Rep. .

Abstract

Oligonychus Berlese (Acari, Prostigmata, Tetranychidae) is an agriculturally important and the largest genus of spider mites, comprised of 211 species (including new species), two subgenera, four species groups, and 11 species subgroups. The present study comprehensively addressed the morphotaxonomic-based identification of world species of the subgenus Reckiella Tuttle and Baker. Five diagnostic keys were developed for identifying Oligonychus (Reckiella) species belonging to five species subgroups: iseilemae, pritchardi, biharensis, gossypii, and exsiccator. Taxonomic notes are provided on intraspecific variations and some closely related Oligonychus (Reckiella) species representing six species complexes, viz. the afrasiaticus complex, the litchii complex, the pratensis complex, the plegas complex, the sacchari complex, and the tylus complex. One new spider mite species, Oligonychus bahaensis sp. nov., is described and illustrated from Grasses (Poaceae) under the subgenus Reckiella.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Morphological aedeagal parameters (H1: height of bent aedegal part, measured from the level when shaft dorsal margin just starting to bend upward (A either shaft dorsal margin straight, e.g. in Oligonychus afrasiaticus or B undulating, e.g. in O. oenotherae Smiley and Baker) to maximum height of knob dorsal margin, H2: height of knob stem, measured from the level when shaft dorsal margin just starting to bend upward to the level of measuring stem width, L1: length of shaft dorsal margin; L2: length of knob, W1: width of shaft, W2: width of knob stem, AL: length of knob anterior projection, PL: length of knob posterior projection, α1: angle formed between shaft axis and knob axis, and, α2: angle formed between shaft axis and bent part axis) that measured and used in the diagnostic keys for differentiation among some Oligonychus species of the subgenus Reckiella.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Oligonychus bahaensis sp. nov., Female: (A) dorsum, (B) lobes on dorsal striae, (C) venter, (D) peritreme and stylophore, ( E)—palp.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Oligonychus bahaensis sp. nov., Female: (A) leg I (left), (B) leg II (left), (C) leg III (left), (D) leg IV (left), (E) empodium IV (left).
Figure 4
Figure 4
Oligonychus bahaensis sp. nov., Male: (A) dorsum, (B) venter, (C), (D) aedeagus, (E)—palp.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Oligonychus bahaensis sp. nov., Male: (A) tibia and tarsus I, (B) tibia and tarsus II, (C) empodium I.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Oligonychus pratensis (Banks), Male: aedeagus.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Hoy MA. Agricultural acarology: Introduction to integrated mite management. CRC Press; 2011.
    1. Migeon, A. & Dorkeld, F. Spider Mites Web: A comprehensive database for the Tetranychidae, http://www1.montpellier.inra.fr/CBGP/spmweb (2022).
    1. Bolland HR, Gutierrez J, Flechtmann CHW. World catalogue of the spider mite family (Acari: Tetranychidae) Brill Academic Publishers; 1998.
    1. Jeppson LR, Keifer HH, Baker EW. Mites injurious to economic plants. University of California Press; 1975.
    1. Mushtaq HMS, Alatawi FJ, Kamran M, Flechtmann CHW. The genus Oligonychus Berlese (Acari, Prostigmata, Tetranychidae): Taxonomic assessment and a key to subgenera, species groups, and subgroups. Zookeys. 2021;1079:89. doi: 10.3897/zookeys.1079.75175. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types