71 John Clark Four parasitic mite families newly recorded* from New Zealand John M. Clark 420 Bower Ave, Parklands, Christchurch 8083 [email protected] Abstract Four parasitic mite families (three in birds) are newly recorded from New Zealand. A brief diagnosis is provided for each family. Harpirhynchidae are recorded from greenfinch Carduelis carduelis. Syringophilidae are recorded from a feather/skin digest of a gannet Sula serrator and from the primary and secondary quills of a house sparrow Passer domesticus. Dermoglyphidae, Dermoglyphus passerinus Gaud, 1971, is reported from inside a primary feather of a male house sparrow. Johnstonianidae Paraplothrombium Robaux 1968 is recorded as an adult from a mesic forest floor. Keywords: Harpirhynchidae, Syringophilidae, Johnstonianidae, Dermoglyphidae, New Zealand mites Introduction Mites form an important parasitic fauna. This note records four parasitic families in New Zealand that are absent from checklists (Sirvid et al, (2009); Bishop & Heath, (1998); Tenquist and Charleston, (1981, 2001) and Mironov & Galloway, (2002)). The Harpirhynchidae and Syringophilidae, are obligate Cheyletoid bird skin or quill parasites. Dermoglyphidae are psoroptid astigmatina which also inhabit feather quills. Johnstonianidae are parasitengonids known to be parasitic only as a larvae on insects such as diptera, especially midges and mosquitos but also on coleptera pupae (Newell, 1957). Adult johnstonianids are cosmopolitan free-living predators in mesic habitats. * Note added in proof: Since the writing of this manuscript another record of Syringophilidae from New Zealand has been reported (Marciniak et al., 2019). The Weta 53: 71-80 72 The Dermoglyphidae is recorded from NZ in Tenquist & Charleston (1981, 2001). They placed Falculifer rostratus Buchholz 1869 in the Dermoglyphidae in their checklist. This would have followed veterinary literature of the time (Soulsby, 1971). Falculifer rostratus was reported as possibly biting humans in Heath et al (1971). However, Falculifer is now the type genus of the family Falculiferidae. The Tenquist & Charleston (1981, 2001) record for Dermoglyphidae in NZ is therefore invalid. The Johnstonianidae are regarded as morphologically and ecologically unusual in the Parasitengona. They occupy mesic habitats somewhat between the true water mites or subcohorts Hydrachniae and the terrestrial Trombidiae (Newell, 1947; Walter, 2009). The family has been placed in the Trombiculoidea by Walter et al (2009) and in the Trombidoidea by Mąkol & Wohltmann (2012). See Robaux (1973) for a discussion on this question. Newell (1957) comments that the larval mites do not become firmly attached to their host the way other parasitengonids do; no stylophore develops and the mites are easily detached. Diagnosis of families - Based on the keys in Krantz & Walter (2009) Harpirhynchidae Dubinin 1957: Cheyletoid with soft oval weak dorsal shields. Bird parasites on feathers or skin or under skin. Some under reptile scales. Styliform, needle-like retractable chelicera. Peritremes open at chelicera bases. Spins silken retreats. Syringophilidae Lavoipierre 1953: Cheyletoid. Elongate body. Parasites found within the bases of larger feather quills. Stylophore containing chelicerae fused to subcapitulum to form gnathosomic capsule used to pierce the quill to feed on fluids. Palptibia claw absent. Dermoglyphidae Mégnin & Trouessart 1883: Psoroptid astigmatina; bird quill parasites; body elongate; terminal anus; epigynum absent; tarsal proral setae (p & q) absent; two ventral setae on tarsus IV; chelae chelate; legs III & IV inserted ventrally; Gaud (1974) presents a history and discussion of the family characters and affinities; a diagnosis of Dermoglyphus Mégnin 1877 and a description of D. passerinus. Johnstonianidae Newell 1957: Parasitengonae (larvae parasitic on insects), Trombididae - chelicera with movable digit bladelike. Adult with 73 John Clark hypertrichous idiosoma and appendages; terrestrial, mesic. Pregenital tubercle absent. Idionotum lacking fingerlike projections. Idionotal setae lightly barbed, set on small platelets. Palptibia long, tapered, accessory claw large, equal to terminal palp claw and inserted ventrally; palptrochanter fenestrated. Materials and Methods Harpirhynchidae & Syringophilidae From 1990 – 1999 while living in Inglewood, I examined, dissected or skinned dead birds to recover parasitic mites. Cadavers came from our family cat, road-killed birds and the Taranaki museum's freezer. Birds were skinned; the skins were digested with caustic soda (NaOH) to free the parasitic mites of the feathers, skin and subcutaneous tissue. The mites were filtered from the digests (#200 mesh/inch), neutralised, cleared in Nesbitt's fluid and mounted in Hoyer’s gum chloral for microscopic examination. A road-killed male sparrow was collected in Christchurch on 19 June 2018. The primary flight feather hollow proximal base (calamus) was split lengthwise with a scalpel and searched with a microscope for quill mites. Photos and drawings of the mites were used for identification to family level using Krantz & Walter (2009) and Baker (1999) and other papers listed below. The late Alex Fain of Brussels identified the Syringophilidae to family level. That identification was checked using Bochkov & Mironov (1998). Dermoglyphidae When a domestic cat was eating a male house sparrow in Christchurch on 12 June 2018, I recovered a set of primary feathers and examined them for quill mites by splitting them lengthwise with a scalpel under a dissecting microscope. A single female mite was collected, cleared in Nesbitt's fluid and mounted in Hoyer’s gum chloral for examination and identification. Species level identification was possible using Gaud (1974). Johnstonianidae A Tullgren extract was made of leaves and twigs from decaying forest floor vegetation under mesic tawa/kamahi forest from the State Highway 3A The Weta 53: 71-80 74 stormwater drain flowing into the Maketawa River near Inglewood, Taranaki, S39°, E174° on 6 June 1997. Mites were cleared in Nesbitt’s fluid (acidic chloral hydrate) and mounted on microscope slides in Hoyer’s gum chloral medium for microscopic examination and long-term storage. Generic level identification was possible using Robaux, 1968. Results Harpirhynchidae Figures 1 & 2. Host 1, Greenfinch, Male. Caught by cat. 21 June. 1992. JMC#320. The caustic soda (NaOH) digest of skin and feathers produced c.6 harpirhynchid mites but their cuticle was undermined so they were in pieces. Figure 1 is a composite drawing showed enough characters to make a positive identification to the family level. As a composite drawing, there are inaccuracies, but I am only claiming identification to the family level here. Figure 1: Harpirhynchidae. Free-hand composite sketch from 6 mites from feather and skin digest of greenfinch host 1, JMC#320, Inglewood, 21 June 1992. scale bar = 100µ. 75 John Clark Figure 2 (previous page): Harpirhynchidae. Photo of page 76 of author's lab book showing mite location on #512, greenfinch host 2; lores (between eyes and ears) and silk tent holding female and eggs. Key text, "maggot- like body with female mite at (feather) base and red/yellow eggs behind her. Then (hatched) eggshells (which are) clear" 20 September 2000. Figure 2, Host 2, is a photocopy of the notes made on an external examination of the host bird, greenfinch JMC#512, 20 Sept 2000. Col: Diana Clark, Road-killed, Inglewood. The female mite was visible on the rachis of facial feathers at the head of a greasy web containing eggs. Syringophilidae Figure 3. Host; Australasian Gannet (Sula bassana serrator), found dead on Taranaki coast. January 1991. JMC#398. Ex. Taranaki Museum. The host skin, in addition to the Syringophilidae mites, held a large population of parasitic hypopodes (deutonymphs) of Suladectes hughesae antipodus Fain & Clark 1994 (Hypoderatidae) which we were studying at that time. From the base of the primary quills of the road-killed house sparrow from Christchurch, eight syringophilid mites were collected Figure 4. Figure 3: Syringophilidae from a skin and feather digest of female adult gannet host JMC#398 collected on the Taranaki coast, January 1991. The Weta 53: 71-80 76 Figure 4 (previous page): Syringophilidae from within a primary quill (feather) of a male house sparrow collected in Christchurch. Mite is 580Μ long, 130µ wide. Dermoglyphidae Figure 5. Dermoglyphus passerinus Gaud 1974 was isolated from a primary quill of a male house sparrow. Cat caught, New Brighton, Christchurch. 12 June 2018. Figure 5: Dermoglyphidae: Dermoglyphus passerinus Gaud, 1974, female, 680µ long 250µ wide, from primary feather quill of male Passer domesticus, New Brighton, 12 June 2018. Johnstonianidae Figure 6. This sample collected 6 June 1997 provided a single specimen of a Johnstonianidae mite which remained unidentified at family level by the author until c. 2016. Deposition of material The permanent slides are to be deposited in the Canterbury Museum. 77 John Clark Figure 6: Johnstonianidae. Paraplothrombium sp. Female collected by Tullgren funnel from wet forest floor/roadside ditch, Maketawa R. SH 3A near Inglewood, Taranaki. Length from post body to chelae tips = 1450µ. Discussion The Harpirhynchidae collected from two host greenfinches may represent a single species. The drawing and notes from host 2 are consistent with what is observed in Harpirhynchus novoplumaris Moss Oliver & Nelson 1968. That species is known to be found on the head and neck of the host where the female