Tenuipalpus oliveirai , A NEW SPECIES ( ACARI , PROSTIGMATA , TENUIPALPIDAE ) FROM BRAZIL 1

Tenuipalpus oliveirai, a new species of tenuipalpid mite from Brazil is described and illustrated.


INTRODUCTION
In the course of routine observations for mites affecting plants, Prof. Dr. Carlos Amadeu Leite de Oliveira collected a new tenuipalpid mite from a pasture invading shrub, Peschiera fuchsiaefolia Miers.(Apocynaceae), a plant locally known as "leiteiro", in Barretes, São Paulo, Brazil, which is herein described and figured.
Tenuipalpus oliveirai new species: FEMALE.Gnathosoma  with one pair of well developed ventral setae and one pair of minute, capitate eupathidia.Palpus trisegmented, the second segment with a pectinate seta dorsally, the third with an elongate slender eupathidium.
Rostral shield deeply incised medially.Propodosoma with a wide, strongly elevated, mediodorsal area; a mediolateral depression on each side and lateral areas also elevated, lateral margins depressed.First and second propodosomal setae, P 1 and P 2 (v 2 e sc 1 ) minute, the third, P 3 (sc 2 ) marginal, strong and pubescent, at least six times as long as the first and second pairs.Striation pattern as figured.
Podosoma with a single pair of short, smooth medioventral setae (IC 3 ) anteriorly and a pair of long, smooth, medioventrals (IC 4 ) posteriorly.
Except for one pair of agenital shield setae which is added in the female, the full complement of leg and body setae is present in the deutonymph.All tarsi in the deutonymph and in the female with one pair of strong pectinate setae ventrally and all tibiae with one pair of serrate setae ventrally.Other setae as figured.

DEUTONYMPH. (Figures
Ventrally on the opisthosoma, internal structures of the egg passage of the reproductive system are strongly visible (Fig. 10); closer examination shows the initial stage of development of the genitoventral shield (Fig. 9), bearing 3 pairs of setae.
Ventrally with one pair of medioventral (IC 3 ), one pair of coxal I and two pairs of anal setae.Integument finely striated.
DIAGNOSIS.This species belongs to the Tenuipalpus caudatus group of MEYER & SMITH (1979) and of BAKER & TUTTLE (1987) and is close to T. sclerocaryae Meyer, differing by the presence of dorsal elevations and by the dorsal ornamentations.This species further differs from T. sclerocaryae in that the third propodosomal setae are about six times as long as the first and second pairs of propodosomals whereas those of T. sclerocaryae are about twice as long as the first and second pairs.