First records of the marine water mite family Pontarachnidae Koenike, 1910 from New Zealand (Acari: Hydrachnidia), with the description of one new species
Abstract
Two species of the genus Litarachna Walter, 1925 are reported from New Zealand. They are the first representatives of Pontarachnidae from this country, the only water mite family occurring in the marine environment. Litarachna quinqueseta Pešić and Smit n. sp. is described as new for science, and L. amnicola Cook, 1986 is reported for the first time for New Zealand. Finally, we provide a worldwide key for the genus Litarachna.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Study of Mite Species
Insect-Plant Interactions and Control
Hymenoptera taxonomy and phylogeny
Publication details
- Journal / source
- Acarologia
- Publisher
- Les Amis d'Acarologia
- Volume
- 66
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 134–148
- Publication date
- 19 February 2026
- Language
- EN