Taxonomic account of jumping spiders – Genus Marpissa C. L. Koch (Archnida: Araneae: Salticidae) from Bangladesh

A taxonomic study on the jumping spiders’ genus Marpissa C.L. Koch, 1846 was carried out from different areas of Bangladesh. Four species were identified from the study, namely M. andamanensis Tikader, M. bengalensis Tikader, M. calcuttaensis Tikader and M. decorata Tikader. All the species are illustrated and described in detail for the first time in Bangladesh. Generic diagnosis, distribution and key to the species are also provided herewith J. Biodivers. Conserv. Bioresour. Manag. 2021, 7(1): 1-10

Contribution to the knowledge of the oribatid mite genus Tritegeus (Acari, Oribatida, Cepheidae), with description of a new species from Nepal

A new species of oribatid mites of the family Cepheidae (Oribatida)—Tritegeus janosbaloghi sp. nov.—is described based on adults from soil-litter in Nepalese forest. The generic diagnosis of Tritegeus is updated. An identification key and data on distribution of known species of Tritegeus are provided.

The genera Coccus and Prococcus (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha: Coccidae) in China, with two new combinations and descriptions of two new species

The Chinese soft scale species in the genus Coccus Linnaeus, 1758 (Hemiptera: Coccomorpha: Coccidae) were studied. Coccus cambodiensis Takahashi and the Malaysian species C. cameronensis Takahashi are considered to be non-congeneric with Coccus hesperidum Linnaeus, 1758, the type species of Coccus, and are transferred to Prococcus Avasthi, 1993, as Prococcus cambodiensis (Takahashi, 1942), comb. n. and Prococcus cameronensis (Takahashi, 1952), comb. n. The generic diagnosis of Prococcus is revised. In the genus Coccus, two new species are described and illustrated based on adult females: Coccus nanningensis Cao & Feng, sp. n. from Guangxi, China, on Ficus carica (Moraceae), and Coccus cephalotaxus Cao & Feng, sp. n. from Shannxi, China, on Cephalotaxus sinensis (Taxaceae). Identification keys to separate adult females of Prococcus from Coccus, the 14 species of Coccus found in China, and all three species of Prococcus are provided.

Contribution to the knowledge of the oribatid mite genus Gittella (Acari, Oribatida, Oppiidae), with description of a new species from Peru

A new species of the genus Gittella (Oribatida, Oppiidae) - G. kontschani n. sp. - is described, based on materials collected from upper soil and leaf litter in the primary evergreen lowland rainforest of Amazonian Peru. Generic diagnosis, an identification key, distribution, and habitats of all known species of Gittella are presented.

Contribution to the knowledge of the oribatid mite genus Leobodes (Acari, Oribatida, Nippobodidae)

Three new species of oribatid mites of the genus Leobodes (Oribatida, Nippobodidae) - L. becki n. sp., L. schalleri n. sp. and L. schawalleri n. sp. - are described from Nepal. Revised generic diagnosis and an identification key to 10 known species of Leobodes are provided.

No longer endemic to Africa: Kribiodosis Kieffer, 1921 (Diptera, Chironomidae) new to Oriental China with a phylogeny and expanded adult generic diagnoses

Kribiodosis Kieffer, 1921, an African genus of Chironomini (Diptera: Chironomidae), is newly recorded from the Oriental region through a new species K. cantonensis sp. n. Detailed descriptions of the male, female and a DNA barcode are provided. With the inclusion of the new species bearing scutal tubercle and fused tibial comb, the generic diagnosis needs revision and expansion. The phylogenetic position of Kribiodosis within the tribe Chironomini is explored based on five concatenated genetic makers (18S, 28S, CAD1, CAD4 and COI-3P) using both mixed-model Bayesian inference and maximum likelihood methods. Kribiodosis is placed as a core member of the Microtendipes group but its precise sister group remains unclear. Inclusion of the analysis of Nilodosis Kieffer, another Chironomini genus with an African-Oriental distribution, reveals an unexpected robust position as sister to a large and diverse inclusive group of many Chironomini.

A new member of the Stictochironomus caffrarius group from West Bengal, India, with emendation of generic diagnosis (Diptera, Chironomidae)

Stictochironomus bengalensis n. sp. is described based on the male adult, pupa and larva from West Bengal, India. The species is a new member of the S. caffrarius group. Generic diagnoses for the pupa and larva are emended to accommodate the characteristics of the species group. In addition, a key to the known males of Stictochironomus from the Oriental region is provided.

New data on gastropod genus Hirsuticyclus (Caenogastropoda, Cyclophoridae) from mid-Cretaceous Kachin amber

The genus Hirsuticyclus Neubauer, Xing & Jochum, 2019 was the first record of an exceptionally preserved land snail with dense periostracal hairs from mid-Cretaceous Kachin (Burmese) amber. Here we document four newly-discovered shells from Kachin amber, one belonging to the type species Hirsuticyclus electrum Neubauer, Xing & Jochum, 2019 and the remaining three shells belonging to a new species, Hirsuticyclus canaliculatus sp. nov. Well-preserved morphological characteristics of these two species could be clearly demonstrated under light microscopy combined with modern micro-CT scans with computer 3D reconstructions. Our new material of the type species amends the generic diagnosis based on a better-preserved shell including the peristome and operculum. The new species shows distinctive shell characteristics such as numerous spiral keels and a flaring, folded peristome interrupted by two canals. These excellently preserved fossils contribute to our understanding of the morphological diversity and evolution of these ancient members of cyclophoroids.

Contribution to the knowledge of Mainothrus (Acari, Oribatida, Trhypochthoniidae), with description of two new species from Russia and Brunei

Two new species of oribatid mites of the genus Mainothrus (Oribatida, Trhypochthoniidae)—M. paratransaltaicus sp. nov. and M. davidmarshalli sp. nov.—are described on the basis of adult specimens sampled from Russia and Brunei (first record of the genus in the Oriental region). Supplementary description (SEM micrographs) for Mainothrus badius (Berlese, 1905) is presented. A revised generic diagnosis and an identification key to known species of Mainothrus are provided.

Two rare species of Danielsseniinae (Copepoda: Harpacticoida: Pseudotachidiidae) from the Kara and East Siberian Seas, with description of their previously unknown sexes

The previously unknown females of Danielssenia spitsbergensis Gee & Huys, 1994 and males of Mucrosenia kendalli Gee & Huys, 1994 (Pseudotachidiidae, Danielsseniinae) are described based on specimens collected in the Kara and East Siberian Seas. Females of D. spitsbergensis exhibit the main diagnostic features of the genus Danielssenia Boeck, 1873 (antennule four-segmented; proximal segment of antennary exopod with one seta; structure of all the mouthparts; absence of an inner seta on exopod-1 of P2–P4; P5 not fused medially and with distinct exopod and baseoendopod, the latter with five setae; genital field with small copulatory pore and short copulatory duct leading to seminal receptacle with paired anterior chambers). At the same time, these specimens also exhibit some distinctive features which are unique for the species but disagree with the generic diagnosis. These peculiarities validate the placing of D. spitsbergensis as species incertae sedis within Danielssenia and point out the necessity of examination of other ‘Danielssenia-like’ forms before the true taxonomic position of this species can be elucidated. Both males and females of M. kendalli exhibit the autapomorphies of the genus, viz. P2 endopod-2 with a mucroniform process reaching almost to end of endopod-3 (this sexually dimorphic character is more pronounced in the males but also present in females); P2 endopod-2 without inner seta; posterior displacement of caudal ramus seta II; presence of tuft of long setules at inner distal corner of caudal ramus; P2 endopod shorter than exopod; P2–P4 exopod-1 without inner seta. Furthermore, some particular features (anal somite and pseudoperculum morphology; female P1 endopod distinctly longer than exopod; P5 exopod with distinct suture on dorsal surface separating it from the baseoendopod; prominent mucroniform process on P2 endopod-2) of the Kara and East Siberian Sea specimens conform fully with the original description of M. kendalli but apparently differ from M. kliei (Smirnov, 1946), the single female of which was collected from the same region and depth. Therefore, the validity and definite status of the specimen described by Smirnov is still a matter of conjecture pending additional findings and, particularly, the discovery of the male.