| Fauna of Trigynaspid and Sejid mites (Acari: Mesostigmata) associated with ants in Charmahal Va Bakhtiari Province (Iran) |
| Paper ID : 1003-IPCA4 (R1) |
| Authors |
|
arsalan Khalili-Moghadam *1, Alireza Nemati2, zarir saeidi3 1Department of Plant Protection, Faculty of Agriculture, Shahrekord University, Iran. 2Plant Protection Department, Agricultural College, Shahrekord University, Shahrekord, Iran. 3Agricultural and Natural Reaserch Center, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, Shahrekord, Iran |
| Abstract |
| Mites of Trigynaspida and Sejida have been reported from different habitats, including soil, litter, rotting wood and social insects, especially ants and their nests and possibly feeding on these insects. Ants are the engineers of the ecosystem, and their nests provide the stability source for myrmecophiles. This efficiency of ants causes the attraction of different kinds of arthropods such as mites. To evaluate the mesostigmatid mites fauna associated with ants in Chaharmahal va Bakhtiari Province, sampling of the ant nest from this province was conducted during 2015-2018. For sampling, ants and soil of their nest were collected by pence and shovel and placed within plastic bags. Necessary information such as geographical location (with GPS), name of location, date, habitats and other important data were recorded. Samples were transferred to the laboratory and placed within the Berlese funnel for mite extraction. After 72 hours, mites fall down into the alcohol solution (70%). These samples were sorted using appropriate needles, mites cleared in acid lactic (80%) at 50 °C and mounted into Hoyer medium as permanent microslides. This is the first record of ant's as habitat for Sejida mites in Iran. Identified species are as fallow: Sejida, Ichthyostomatogasteridae: Asternolaelaps fecundus Berlese, 1923. Trigyanaspida, Antennophoridae: Antennophorus foreli Wasmann, 1902. Celaenopsidae: Celaenopsis badius C.L. Koch, 1839. |
| Keywords |
| Trigynaspida, Sejida, ant, Iran |
| Status: Abstract Accepted (Poster Presentation) |