Pachyseius biscleritus Özbek & Akyol, 2025

Pachyseius biscleritus Özbek & Akyol sp. nov.

( Figs 24–31 View FIGURES 24−28 View FIGURES 29−31 )

Diagnosis. Female.

Ventrianal shield bears two pairs of preanal setae ( Jv1, Jv2); presternal shields weakly sclerotized, transversely striate, fused together, and connected to anterior margin of sternal shields; exopodal shields II–III and III–IV free, not fused to peritrematal shields; antero-lateral section of dorsal shield between setae z1 and z2 and peritrematal shields close to stigma with enlarged and cavity-like poroid structure; soft integument between peritrematal shields and anterolateral margins of ventrianal shield with one pair of large and elongated and two pairs small oval apodemes; posterior margin of epigynal shield with a transverse row of four elongate platelets; lateral and ophistogastric soft integument bears thirteen pairs of setae (eight pairs of marginal, five pairs of ophistogastric).

Type material. Holotype, female from litter of Juniperus sp. , 39°24‘N 38°27‘E, 1990 m a.s.l., 13 February 2024. Paratypes: 2♀♀ from moss and soil, 39°41‘N 39°24‘E, 1158 m a.s.l., 24 November 2023 —the Karasu Valley (Söğütözü, İliç) GoogleMaps .

Description. Female.

Dorsum ( Fig. 24 View FIGURES 24−28 ). Dorsal shield 600–616 long, 300–322 wide at widest point, elongate (length/width, 1.86–2.06), ornamented with reticulate pattern, bearing 30 pairs of setae, all smooth and pointed; setae z1 shortest (8–10), j3, z2, z4, s4, r3, S3, S4 and S5 slightly longer 30–36, other setae length 22–30; a pair of “T”-shaped lyrifissures present between j2 and z1; a pair of cavity-like gland pores gdj3 present between setae z1 and z2; anterior surface with two pairs of minute suboval sclerites located between setae j2 and j3. Anterior ends of peritremes extending beyond of level of gland pores gdj3, but do not reaching base of setae z1.

Venter ( Figs 25 View FIGURES 24−28 , 29 View FIGURES 29−31 ). Presternal area weakly sclerotized with transversely striated and completely integrated with the anterior margin of the sternal shield. Sternal shield 125–130 long, 85–100 wide at level of coxae II, central region ornamented with punctates and lines, carrying three pairs of smooth pointed setae and two pairs of lyrifissures, edges of shield strongly sclerotised. Length of setae st1–3 30–36. Metasternal shields very small, each bearing a metasternal seta (25–30) and a poroid. Epigynal shield 115–120 long, 75–85 wide at widest point, with punctate ornamentation; four elongate platelets on its posterior margin; genital pores situated outside the shield; genital setae length 28–30. Ventrianal shield longer than wide, 235–246 long, 147–162 wide at the widest point (length/width 1.47–1.67), reticulated with punctate lines, and bearing two pairs of sub-equal pre-anal setae (28–34), a pair of para-anal setae (35–38) and a post-anal seta (24–27); para-anal setae longer than postanal seta. Peritrematal shields free from closely adjacent exopodal shields II-III and III-IV; post-stigmatic sections of the shields narrowed posteriorly, slightly concave on inner margin, truncated or slightly rounded terminally, reaching slightly beyond the posterior margin of coxae IV, and each bearing two small pore-like structures and one greatly enlarged cavity-like poroid close to stigma. Peritremes normal, with anterior ends reaching marginal dorsal surface between setae gdj3 and z2. Exopodal shields III-IV free from peritrematal shields and exopodals II-III. Soft integument between peritrematal shields and anterolateral margins of ventrianal shield with two pairs of small oval and a pair of large, elongated apodemes. Metapodal region with a pair of narrow, conspicuously elongated and longitudinally oriented shields; the shields about 52–56 long and relatively well separated from anterolateral margins of ventrianal shield. Lateral and opisthogastric soft integument with thirteen pairs of setae: eight pairs of marginal ( r6, R1–R7) and five pairs of ophistogastric setae ( ZV3, ZV4, JV3–JV5).

Spermathecal apparatus. Spermathecal tubes long and fine, apical section well widened, tulip shaped, associated with coxae III ( Fig. 30 View FIGURES 29−31 ).

Gnathosomal structures. Corniculi slender and apically pointed, horn-like; deutosternal groove with five transverse rows of denticles and two posterior and one anterior smooth transverse line; setae h3 longest, h2 and pc equal in length and smaller than h1. Palptibia without outgrowths, palptarsus with three-tined apotele. Epistome regularly convex, widely rounded and densely denticulate on anterior margin ( Fig. 26 View FIGURES 24−28 ). Cheliceral digits slender: movable digit 54–56 long, with two subdistal teeth and a terminal hook with a notch in the middle; fixed digit 44–46 long (to the dorsal seta), with medially a large, a subdistal teeth and terminally with bidentate hook; pilus dentilis minute, and arthrodial brush short ( Figs 27 View FIGURES 24−28 , 31 View FIGURES 29−31 ).

Legs. Leg setation normal for the genus ( Mašán, 2007). Tarsus II with one spur-like distal setae, pl1 ( Fig. 28 View FIGURES 24−28 )

Male and immature stages. Unknown

Etymology. The species is named after the Latin bi- meaning “two” and scleritus from sclerites, referring to the two pairs of small, oval sclerites between setae j2 and j3 on the dorsal shield.

Remarks: The new species resembles P. friedrichi Mašán, 2008 , P. angustus Hyatt 1956 , and P. angustoides Babaeian & Mašán, 2016 , of the genus in the following characteristics: (1) peritrematal shields free, not fused with exopodal shields, (2) ventrianal shield with two pairs of setae, (3) metapodal plates much longer than wide, not fused to the ventrianal shield, (4) presternal area weakly sclerotized, distinct presternal shields absent, (5) posterior ends of peritrematal shields reaching the posterior level of exopodal plates IV

Pachyseius biscleritus sp. nov. differs from P. friedrichi in the presence of weakly sclerotized presternal shields, a different modification of the posterior section of the peritrematal shield, a different shape of the epistome, a different number of setae on the soft integument, and the shape of the ventrianal shield (inverted pear-shaped in P. friedrichi ; oblong in P. biscleritus ). Pachyseius biscleritus sp. nov. also differs from P. angustus in the number of spur-like setae on tarsus II of the female (two setae in P. angustus , one seta in P. biscleritus ), the modification of the posterior section of the peritrematal shield, the number of setae on the soft integument (12 pairs in P. angustus , 13 pairs in P. biscleritus ), and the position of the genital pore, which is located on the epigynal shield in P. angustus ( Mašán, 2007, 2008).

Pachyseius biscleritus sp. nov. differs from P. angustoides View in CoL in the following characteristics: the number of apodemes on the soft integument near the anterolateral margins of the ventrianal shield (two pairs of small oval and one pair of large elongated apodemes in P. biscleritus ; one pair of small oval and one pair of large elongated apodemes in P. angustoides View in CoL ), the number of setae on the soft integument (13 pairs in P. biscleritus , 12 pairs in P. angustoides View in CoL ), the modifications of the posterior part of the peritrematal shield (slightly narrowed towards the terminal section in P. biscleritus , strongly narrowed in P. angustoides View in CoL ), the anterior ends of the peritremes extending beyond the level of gland pores gdj 3 in P. biscleritus , whereas in P. angustoides View in CoL they only reach this level, and the presence of two pairs of minute suboval sclerites located between setae j2 and j 3 in P. biscleritus , which are absent in P. angustoides ( Babaeian et al., 2016) View in CoL .