Macrocheles praedafimetorum (Acari: Macrochelidae), female, ex nest of the bumblebee Bombus terricola,  Canada: Alberta title=
Fig. 1. Macrocheles praedafimetorum (Acari: Macrochelidae), female, ex nest of the bumblebee Bombus terricola,  Canada: Alberta. Click to enlarge

Bee Mites : Acari : Parasitiformes : Mesostigmata

 
Family Macrochelidae Vitzthum, 1930

Macrochelidae Vitzthum, 1930: 301.


Type genus Macrocheles Latreille, 1829


Material (show database records).

General Description. This family includes 14 genera. Two of them, Trigonholaspis and Macrocheles, were recorded from bees (Chmielewski, 1991; De Jong et al., 1982; Eickwort, 1988; Krantz, 1998; Richards and Richards, 1977).

Distribution (show map).

Key to genera of Macrochelidae associated with bees


1. Four pairs of opisthonotal dorsocentral setae (J1, J2, J3, J5). Anterodorsal "hump" present. Sternal shield not coarsely punctate ... Trigonholaspis

- Two, rarely three, pairs of opisthonotal dorsocentral setae. Anterodorsal "hump" absent. Some areas of sternal shield often coarsely punctate... Macrocheles


References
Chmielewski, W. 1991. Roztocze (Acarida) pszczoly miodnej (Apis mellifera L.) w Polsce [Mites (Acarida) of honeybee (Apis mellifera L.) in Poland]. Wiadomosci Parazytologiczne.37: 91-94.
de Jong, D. M., R.A.; Eickwort, G.C. 1982. Mite pests of honey bees. Annual Review of Entomology.27: 229-252.
Eickwort, G. C. 1988. The origins of mites associated with honey bees. In Africanized honey bees and bee mites, eds. G. R. Needham, R. E. Page, M. Delfinado-Baker & C. E. Bowman, 327-338. Chichester: Ellis Horwood.
Krantz, G. W. 1998. Observations on five rarely collected genera of Macrochelidae (Acari: Mesostigmata) associated with insects. Acarologia.39: 95-109.
Richards, K. W. & L. A. Richards. 1977. A new species of Macrocheles (Acarina: Macrochelidae) found in bumble bee nests (Hymenoptera: Apidae). Canadian Entomologist.109: 711-719.
Vitzthum, H. 1930. Acarologische Beobachtungen. (14 Reihe.). Zoologische Jahrbücher. Abteilung für Systematik, Geographie und Biologie der Tiere.59: 281-350.



Image Gallery
Macrocheles praedafimetorum (Acari: Macrochelidae), female, ex nest of the bumblebee Bombus terricola,  Canada: Alberta
Macrocheles		Trigonholaspis sp., ex nest of the stingless bee Lestrimelitta limao, Panama, BMOC 88-0729-001
Trigonholaspis



 

 

B. OConnor and P. Klimov ©
Created: April 24, 2012
Last modified: