A NEW SPECIES OF LAELASPIS BERLESE (ACARI: LAELAPIDAE) FROM IRAN AND A KEY TO IRANIAN SPECIES

This paper describes a new species of mites in the genus Laelaspis from Iran. Laelaspis guilaniensis n. sp. was collected from soil under alder trees in Gisoom forest, Talesh, Guilan Province, Iran. The new species is described and illustrations are provided. A key to all known Iranian species of the genus is provided.


INTRODUCTION
The Laelapidae is one of the largest families of freeliving Mesostigmata, but it has not yet achieved a stable classification (Joharchi et al., 2012a(Joharchi et al., , 2012b. Hypoaspis Canestrini and related genera have had an especially complicated and confusing history. Laelaspis Berlese, 1903 has often been treated as a subgenus of Hypoaspis Canestrini, 1884 (Hunter, 1961;Hunter and Glover, 1968;Karg, 1982Karg, , 1993Faraji et al., 2008). Joharchi et al. (2011) treated Laelaspis as a separate genus, and gave a diagnosis and comparison of diagnostic characters for the closely related genera Gymnolaelaps and Pseudoparasitus. That concept of Laelapsis is followed here. The cosmopolitan genus Laelaspis includes 12 species in Iran and most species are associated with ants or their nests. However, a few were collected in soil, and most species have only been collected on few occasions, so it is difficult to draw any firm conclusions about their host specificity (Joharchi et al., 2012b). Joharchi et al. (2011Joharchi et al. ( , 2012aJoharchi et al. ( , 2012b previously reported on eight species of mites of the genus Laelaspis and on several genera associated with ants in Iran. Joharchi et al. (2012b) provided a key to species of Laelaspis occurring in the Western Palaearctic Region and a summary of their host associations and biology. The purpose of this paper is to describe another species of Laelaspis to increase our knowledge of the Iranian fauna of Laelapidae.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Laelapid specimens were collected from soil in Guilan Province over a period of two years. Mites were removed from soil using Tullgren fun-nels. Mites were cleared in Nesbitt's solution and mounted in Hoyer's medium. The nomenclature used for the dorsal idiosomal chaetotaxy is that of Lindquist and Evans (1965), the leg chaetotaxy is that of Evans (1963a), the palp chaetotaxy is that of Evans (1963b), and names of other anatomical structures mostly follow Evans and Till (1979). We use the term "lyrifissures" to refer to slit-shaped sensilli, and "pore" for circular or oval-shaped cuticular openings of unspecified function. The holotype of the new species is deposited in the Acarological Collection, Department of Plant Protection, Yazd Branch, Islamic Azad University (YIAU); the paratype is deposited in the Acarological collection, Department of Plant Protection, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Guilan (APAG). All measurements in the descriptions are given in micrometres (µm). Notes on the genus -Laelaspis belongs to a group of genera of Laelapidae in which the genitoventral shield of the female is greatly expanded, so that its posterior margin abuts the anal shield and its lateral margins extend outward behind coxae IV. The expanded genito-ventral shield in these genera captures at least two pairs of ventral setae in addition to the genital setae on the extreme edges of the shield. Laelaspis is distinguished from Gymnolaelaps by its two-tined palp tarsal claw, the absence of presternal shields, and the presence of two distinct Λshaped lines on the genito-ventral shield. Laelaspis differs from Pseudoparasitus because Pseudoparasitus has at least two pairs of setae on the surface of the genito-ventral shield, well inside the edges of the shield, while all the genital setae of Laelaspis and Gymnolaelaps are on the extreme edges of the shield.
Genital structures - (Fig. 1H): Insemination ducts opening on posterior margin of coxa III; sacculus an irregular, with a thorn like structure, dark coloured mass behind genito-ventral shield, each duct entering separate sacculus via circular openings. The proximal ends of the ducts slightly swollen at junction with rami.
Etymology -The name of this species refers to the type locality province, Guilan.
Notes -Laelaspis guilaniensis differs from all other species in the genus by its dorsal shield long setae, seta Z5 much longer than J5; seta v1 on the palp trochanter thick, movable digit of chelicerae without teeth, fixed digit of chelicera with two blunt teeth and post-anal seta serrate.
Remarks -This species was described from the former USSR in association with the rodent Meriones tristrami Thomas (Reitblat, 1963). It was reported from unidentified insects in Iran by Nemati and Babaeian (2010), but we have had the opportunity to examine specimen and we believe this was a misidentified specimen of Laelaspis mossadeghi, therefore Laelaspis imitatus Reitblat, 1963 is excluded from the Iranian fauna.

DISCUSSION
The new species might have two different features, the shape of the spermatheca, which should be confirmed by examination of more species and the lack of teeth on the movable digit of the chelicerae. The last character has been seen in three other species (Laelaspis kamalii Joharchi and Halliday, 2012;Laelaspis equitans (Michael, 1981) and Laelaspis persicus Joharchi and Halliday, 2012) that have been recorded from Iran previously. Therefore dentition of the movable digit of the chelicerae provides a diagnostic character in the genus.
At the start of this study, 12 species of Laelaspis had been reported from Iran. Nemati et al. (2000) reported Pseudoparasitus (Gymnolaelaps) vitzthumi from Iran on the basis of specimens collected from the nest of Tapinoma simrothi Krausse. We have not had the opportunity to examine any specimens to confirm this identification, but on the basis of the photomicrographs and illustrations in Nemati (1999), we believe this was a misidentification of some unknown species of Laelaspis, therefore L. vitzthumi (Womersley, 1956) is excluded from the Iranian fauna. Joharchi et al. have previously provided a key to species of Laelaspis occurring in the Western Palaearctic Region with a summary of their host associations and biology (Joharchi et al., 2012b). We now provide an identification key for all known Iranian species of the genus (partly from Joharchi et al., 2012b). The following key is based on direct examination of specimens.