Redescription of Tenuipalpus palosapis Corpuz-Raros (Trombidiformes: Tenuipalpidae) from the Philippines, with comparison to related species

ABSTRACT

Tenuipalpus palosapis Corpuz-Raros, 1978 was described based on specimens collected on Anisoptera thurifera Blume and Shorea squamata Benth. and Hook.f. (both Dipterocarpaceae), from Laguna, Republic of the Philippines. In this article, we redescribe T. palosapis based on paratype specimens deposited at the National Insect and Mite Collection, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution (NMNH), located at Beltsville, Maryland, USA. We compare T. palosapis with three other morphologically similar species of Tenuipalpus from the Asia-Pacific region, Tenuipalpus antipodus Collyer (New Zealand), Tenuipalpus guamensis Baker (Guam), and Tenuipalpus orilloi Rimando (Republic of the Philippines), and we demonstrate that the females of these species share a well-developed and similarly shaped, genitoventral plate. Based on literature, the latter three species have been recorded on a broader range of host plants than has been recorded for many other species of Tenuipalpus, and have been intercepted at ports of entry in the United States and New Zealand. A key to these four species is provided.

KEYWORDS:

• Taxonomy
• flat mites
• false spider mites
• genitoventral plate
• Tenuipalpus antipodus
• Tenuipalpus guamensis
• Tenuipalpus orilloi
• Caribbean
• Indonesia
• Asia
• biogeography

Acknowledgments

We thank Dr. Gregory Evans (APHIS-USDA) for the revision and helpful suggestions on the manuscript. To Debra Creel and Andrew Ulsamer (SEL-USDA) for their help with references and technical support; to Chris Pooley (ECMU-USDA) for his help with the figures. To the Smithsonian Natural History Museum and National Agricultural Library (NAL-USDA), SEL-USDA for support and assistance with specimens and references. USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the “Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo” (FAPESP) [Procs. 2016/01193-5 and 2017/00458-8], by fellowship to the first autor; the second author was funded by a research grant from the Australian Biological Resources Study, Department of Environment and Energy, Australian Government [grant RF214-23]; and by the “Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico” (CNPq) [Proc. 303435/2013-5] by a research grant to the fourth author.