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Otopheidomenidae

Taxonomic Position

Cohort Gamasina

    Subcohort Dermanyssiae

  Superfamily Phytoseioidea

Family: Otopheidomenidae Treat

Eickwortius Zhang, Entomoseius Chant, Hemipteroseius Evans, Katydiseius Fain & Lukoschus, Nabiseius Chant & Lindquist, Otopheidomenis Treat, Prasadiseius Wainstein, Treatia Krantz & Khot

Diagnostic characters:

Ecology & Distribution.  Otopheidomenid mites are parasites of a variety of insects.  Species of Otopheidomenis, Noctuiseius and Prasadiseius infest noctuiid and sphingid moths.   Species of Hemipteroseius, Treatia, Entomoseius and Nabiseius attack hemipterons.  Katydiseius are found on katydids and Eickwortius on termites.

Similar taxa.  Phytoseiidae have chelate chelicerae and entire dorsal shields.

References

Fain A, Lukoschus FS. 1983. Katydiseius nadchatrami n. g., n. sp. (Acari, Otopheidomenidae) from the tracheae of a Malaysian katydid Chloracris brullei Pictet & Saussure, 1892 (Orthoptera, Pseudophyllidae).  International Journal of Acarology 9(4): 173-178.

Ghai S; Gupta SK. 1984.  A new species of Treatia Krantz and Khot (Acari: Otophe Idomenidae  [Otopheidomenidae]) with a new record of Amblyseius Berlese (Acari: Phytoseiidae) from India.  Bulletin of the Zoological Survey of India 6(1-3): 171-175.

Halliday RB. 1994. First record of the family Otopheidomenidae (Acarina: Mesostigmata) in Australia, with description of Nabiseius melinae sp.n.  Journal of the Australian Entomological Society 33: 347-350

Mo C-F. 1996. A new genus and new species of the Otopheidomenidae (Acari: Mesostigmata)  from longhorned grasshoppers. Systematic and Applied Acarology 1: 199-204.

Syed AR, Goff ML.1983. A new species of Otopheidomenis (Acari: Otopheidomenidae) ectoparasitic on Ascalapha odorata (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) in the Hawaiian Islands, with a key to the species in the genus. International Journal of Entomology (Honolulu) 25(4): 316-320.

Treat AE. 1975. Mites of Moths and Butterflies. Cornell University Press: Ithaca, New York.

Zhang Z-Q. 1995. Review of the systematics and biology of the Otopheidomenidae (Acari: Mesostigmata) with a description of Eickwortius gen. n. from a termite (Isoptera: Termitidae). Systematic-Entomology 20(3): 239-246.