First report of a genus and species of the Family Alycidae (Acari: Endeostigmata) from Iran

During the investigation of edaphic mite fauna of walnut trees in Estahban (Fars province longitude 29˚ 06 N, latitude 54˚ 01 ́E altitude 1860 m above sea level May-June 2009) and Namak-abrood (Mazandaran province longitude 36˚ 40 ́N, latitude 51˚ 18 ́E altitude 44 m above sea level August-September 2009), some specimens belonging to the family of Alycidae were collected from soil, cleared in lactophenol, mounted in Hoyer’s medium and finally identified as Alycus denasutus (Grandjean, 1937). This is the first report of the genus, and species from Iran. This species belongs to the family Alycidae, superfamily Alycoidea, cohort Alycina and suborder Endeostigmata (Walter, 2009). Length of idiosoma 450.8 µm and its maximum width 264.6 µm; body colour white; prodorsum with 2 pairs of filiform trichobothria; cheliceral shafts abruptly tapering, all tarsi with paired claws and rayed empodium. One solenidion on tibia 1(length 10.5 µm); winding ridgs are long and parallel on dorsum (Uustitalo, 2010). naso redused; median eye absent; chelicerae each with 2 seatae (Moraza, 2008). The species has been found in coniferous and deciduous forests, and is possibly Holarctic. It has been reported from Italy (in moss of pine forest, litters, in Fagus valley, and under Robinia and Avena), USA (in litter dunes) and France (Uusitalo, 2010).