Kongsbergia Robisoni, N. Sp (Acari: Hydrachnidiae: Aturidae) from the Interior Highlands of North America Based on Morphology and Molecular Genetic Analysis

TitleKongsbergia Robisoni, N. Sp (Acari: Hydrachnidiae: Aturidae) from the Interior Highlands of North America Based on Morphology and Molecular Genetic Analysis
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year2011
AuthorsRadwell, Andrea J., Ashley P. G. Dowling, Ian M. Smith, and Vamsi Kaliki
JournalInternational Journal of Acarology
Volume37
IssueSupplement 1
Pages194-205
KeywordsMites
Description

A new water mite species, Kongsbergia robisoni, is described from the Interior Highlands of North America based on morphological analysis supported by DNA sequence data. Populations from three ecoregions within the Interior Highlands were found to be morphologically similar to one another and distinct from other known Kongsbergia species. To help to determine whether subtle morphological differences between populations within the Interior Highlands should be interpreted as variability within a single species or were indicative of species endemic to specific ecoregions, mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I sequences were analyzed. Three primary clades of Kongsbergia were supported by 100% bootstrap values and 1.0 Bayesian posterior probabilities. The phylogenetic hypothesis indicated that specimens from the Interior Highlands, including specimens from the Ozark Highlands, Boston Mountains, and Ouachita Mountains, formed a clade that was differentiated from various species of Kongsbergia from Appalachia (Great Smoky Mountains and Southeast Tennessee).

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