Evidence of cryptic speciation in the Hygrobates calliger complex (Acariformes, Hydrachnidia, Hygrobatidae) with the description of two new species
Vladimir Pešić, Yunus Esen, Reinhard Gerecke, Tom Goldschmidt, Levan Mumladze, Harry Smit, Andrzej Zawal
Abstract
Hygrobates specimens with a coarse lineated soft integument generally have been considered as representatives of H. calliger Piersig, 1896, regarded as a common and widely distributed species in the Palaearctic. In the present study using an integrative taxonomic approach that combines morphological studies and DNA barcoding we show that Hygrobates calliger-like mites belong to six distinct lineages. Two species, Hygrobates ponticus sp. nov. (East Türkiye, Georgia) and H. tyrrhenicus sp. nov. (Corsica) are described as new to science.
Topics & Concepts
BiologySpecies complexDNA barcodingGenetic algorithmZoologyAcariformesTaxonomy (biology)Evolutionary biologySystematicsPhylogenetic treeGeneBiochemistryStudy of Mite SpeciesBird parasitology and diseasesAmphibian and Reptile Biology