| id | 9584 (last modified: 5.1.2018) |
| title | Biology and description of a new pygmephorid mite (Acarina: Tarsonemida) associated with the soil-nesting bee Agapostemon nasutus (Hymenoptera: Halictidae) |
| year | 1980 |
| paper | Acarologia (Paris) |
| edition | 21 [2] |
| page | 267-278 |
| language | English |
| checked | paper |
| abstract | The new species Parapygmephorus (Sicilipes) costaricanus (Pygmephorida: Neopygmephorinae) is describded from adult females, males and larvae, and distinguished from P. (S.) halictinis. Adult females are phoretic on adult Agapostemon nasutus and detach from female bees when the bees construct or provision nest cells. The mites oviposit when the mature bee larvae defecate and the mite larvae feed upon some component or contaminant of the bee feces. Adult male mites carry pharate females with their enlarged hind legs and the mites copulate before their hosts moult into adults. Adult female mites attach to the emerging adult bees.
These mites are evidently commensals of bees and their life cycles are closely synchronized with those of their hosts. The biology of these mite species associated with bees previously has not been described. This species occurs not only in Costa Rica but also in Mexico, according to E. A. Cross. |
| URL | http://www1.montpellier.inra.fr/cbgp/acarologia/article.php?id=2893Go to site |
| author | Rack, Gisela |
| coauthor | Eickwort, George C. |