Aponomma (Bothriocroton) glebopalma, n. subgen., n. sp., and Amblyomma glauerti n. sp. (Acari: Ixodida: Ixodidae), parasites of monitor lizards (Varanidae) in Australia

Abstract

Aponomma (Bothriocroton) glebopalma, n. subgen., n. sp., and Amblyomma glauerti, n. sp. (Acari: Ixodidae), are described from the monitor lizards Varanus glebopalma Mitchell and Varanus glauerti Mertens in Western Australia and the Northern Territory, Australia. The new subgenus is erected to accomodate A. (Bothriocroton) glebopalma, a new species with a deeply pitted and pilose scutum in both the adult and immature stages, unlike all other described species of Aponomma. This new species is found in an area where Aponomma fimbriatum Koch, a parasite of varanid lizards and various species of snakes, was the only known member of the genus found in both Western Australia and the Northern Territory. Amblyomma glauerti n. sp., an ornate Australian reptile tick found on the same two hosts in Western Australia and the Northern Territory, is also described. These two new species were recovered from formalin-preserved lizard specimens; therefore, nothing is known of their life cycles, except that all stages parasitize varanid lizards.