Simultaneous evidence for a new species of Torrenticola Piersig, 1896 (Acari, Hydrachnidia) from Montenegro

Abstract

A new water mite, Torrenticola lukai n. sp. (Hydrachnidia, Torrenticolidae), is described from running waters in NorthernMontenegro. The new species is probably a sister species of Torrenticola lundbladi (Viets, 1930), a little documented spe-cies known from central Spain, which is redescribed based on recently collected new material. Morphological data hasbeen obtained with a bright field transmission microscopy and Laser Scanning Confocal Microscopy (LSCM), the latterallowing a realistic representation of the animals external morphology. Voucher specimens provided the DNA from whichbarcode sequences were obtained. External morphology and molecular data confirm that both species are clearly distin-guishable and diagnosticable. A key is given for the males of European species characterized by shoulder platelets fused to the dorsal plate.