Pygmephoridae - undet. sp.
Family Pygmephoridae
Undet. genus and sp. Size: Group Guild Status Eutroglophile Fungivore? Rare A few individuals of an unidentified pygmephorid mite were found on bat guano in the Big Room during the initial study. The original report did not specify if they occurred on fresh or old bat guano deposits. No pygmephorid mites were found during the recent study. Most pygmephorids are fungivores, and several have been demonstrated to be phoretic on various insects including scarab beetles, alates (winged forms) of ants, flies, and others, and on mammals and birds (Rodrigues et al. 2001; Krivolutsky et al. 2004; Whitaker et al. 2007; Mumcuoglu and Braverman 2010; Uppstrom and Klompen 2011). These phoretic associations provide dispersal for the mites to new mold sources. |
© 2023 R.B. Pape. All rights reserved.