Morphology
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| Archegozetes longisetosus | |
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| Species: | A. longisetosus |
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| Archegozetes longisetosus Aoki 1965 [1] | |
Archegozetes longisetosus is a species of tropical moss mite in the family Trhypochthoniidae. It has been used as a model organism and has been found to have a very high pulling strength relative to its size.
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Mites in the suborder Desmonomata are thought to have been reproducing exclusively by parthenogenesis for a very long time. All individuals of Archegozetes longisetosus are female and clutches of two to thirty eggs are laid every few days with the reproductive rate averaging 1.3 eggs per day. [2] [3] There are six developmental stages, a prelarval and a larval stage, three nymphal stages and an adult stage. [4]
Oribatid mites differ from other chelicerate animals such as spiders by the fact that they feed on food particles which they digest internally rather than fluid food digested externally. In a feeding experiment, specimens of Archegozetes longisetosus were offered algae Protococcus sp. scraped from tree bark, two fungi, Stachybotrys sp. and Alternaria sp., and some filter papers made of cellulose-rich wood fibres. They fed preferentially on the algae and also consumed the Alternaria but rejected the Stachybotrys and the filter papers. After about ten days they started to secrete chitinase but did not develop cellulase enzymes to break down cellulose under any of the experimental treatments. [5]
Small rove beetles of the family Staphylinidae live among the leaf litter and largely feed on mites. Archegozetes longisetosus seems to have a chemical defence against being eaten as it has a pair of large oil glands on its abdomen. It was found that the beetles would eat mites from which the oil glands had been removed but would not eat intact specimens. [6]
Researchers have found that the pulling strength of the 1 mm (0.04 in)Archegozetes longisetosus equals about 1,180 times its own weight, five times more than might be expected for an animal of this size. [7] As this study was the first to measure the claw forces of mites, other species could well have stronger pulling forces. [8]
Archegozetes longisetosus has been used as a model organism for studies in chelicerate morphology, function, behaviour and evolution because of its short life cycle and the ease with which it can be cultured in the laboratory. All the mites of this species used in laboratories around the world are descended from one female collected from the wild in 1993. [2]
The subphylum Chelicerata constitutes one of the major subdivisions of the phylum Arthropoda. It contains the sea spiders, arachnids, and several extinct lineages, such as the eurypterids and chasmataspidids.
Arachnida is a class of joint-legged invertebrate animals (arthropods), in the subphylum Chelicerata. Arachnida includes orders containing spiders, scorpions, ticks, mites, harvestmen, and solifuges. In 2019, a molecular phylogenetic study also placed horseshoe crabs in Arachnida.
Mites are small arachnids.
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The strawberry poison frog or strawberry poison-dart frog is a species of small poison dart frog found in Central America. It is common throughout its range, which extends from eastern central Nicaragua through Costa Rica and northwestern Panama. The species is often found in humid lowlands and premontane forest, but large populations are also found in disturbed areas such as plantations. The strawberry poison frog is perhaps most famous for its widespread variation in coloration, comprising approximately 15–30 color morphs, most of which are presumed to be true-breeding. O. pumilio, while not the most poisonous of the dendrobatids, is the most toxic member of its genus.
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Oribatida, also known as oribatid mites, moss mites or beetle mites, are an order of mites, in the "chewing Acariformes" clade Sarcoptiformes. They range in size from 0.2 to 1.4 millimetres. There are currently 12,000 species that have been identified, but researchers estimate that there may anywhere from 60,000 to 120,000 total species. Oribatid mites are by far the most prevalent of all arthropods in forest soils, and are essential for breaking down organic detritus and distributing fungi.
Leptotrombidium is a genus of mites in the family Trombiculidae, that are able to infect humans with scrub typhus through their bite. The larval form feeds on rodents, but also occasionally humans and other large mammals. They are related to the harvest mites of the North America and Europe.
Trombiculidae are a family of mites. Chiggers are often confused with jiggers - a type of flea. Several species of Trombiculidae in their larva stage bite their animal or human host and by embedding their mouthparts into the skin causing "intense irritation" or "a wheal, usually with severe itching and dermatitis",
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The UPLB Museum of Natural History is a natural science and natural history museum within the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) campus. It serves as a center for documentation, research, and information of flora and fauna of the Philippines. The museum is one of the research and extension units of the UPLB and its role parallels that of a library for written records.