Aleksandra Bańkowska

In this study, new data on three pontarachnid mite species are reported. A new species, Litarachna samudra sp. nov., is described from the Thai coast of the Andaman Sea. The female of the new species can be distinguished from its closely related congener, Litarachna smiti Pešić, Chatterjee & Ahmed Abada, 2008 from the Red Sea, by the presence of a peg-like medial seta in the dorsal third of P-4 and a high genetic distance estimated at 16.9% (K2P). Two species, Litarachna poliacarus Pešić & Marshall, 2026 and L. bruneiensis Pešić, Chatterjee, Marshall & Pavićević, 2011, are DNA barcoded for the first time. Molecular results revealed that the sequenced specimen of Litarachna bruneiensis from Brunei falls into the cluster of L. almiri Pešić, Smit & Zawal, 2026, a species recently described from Thailand and Mauritius, indicating that these two species are conspecific. It is therefore proposed to consider L. almiri as a junior synonym of L. bruneiensis. The latter discovery suggests a much more continuous distribution than previously hypothesized, indicating that the species likely relies on “stepping-stone” dispersal utilizing the shallow-water tropical corridors and complex coastal currents of the Indo-Malayan Archipelago.

This study evaluates water mites of the genus Kongsbergia collected from 10 provinces across Eastern Anatolia and the Eastern Black Sea region of Türkiye. Four species are described as new to science: Kongsbergia (s. str.) anatolica sp. nov., K. (s. str.) oezkani sp. nov., K. (Anatolkongsbergia) fatmae sp. nov., and K. (Anatolkongsbergia) kopensis sp. nov. A new subgenus, Anatolkongsbergia subgen. nov., is established to accommodate the latter two species. This subgenus is distinguished from the nominotypical subgenus by the position of the excretory pore on the ventral shield in males. Additionally, Kongsbergia (s. str.) pectinigera Motaş & Tanasachi, 1946 is reported as a new record for the Turkish fauna, and the female of K. (s. str.) persica Pešić, 2005 is described for the first time. Finally, 17 new COI barcodes were generated for five species; these sequences represent the first records for these taxa in the Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLD).

In this study, water mites of the genus Aturus collected from 10 provinces across Eastern Anatolia and the Eastern Black Sea region of Türkiye were evaluated. Aturus spinosus sp. nov. is described as new to science. This new species exhibits pronounced morphological variability regarding the presence and shape of a transverse bar on the dorsal shield; however, molecular analyses confirm the distinctness of the new species from other species of the genus Aturus, while also indicating a lack of genetic differentiation between distinct morphotypes within the species. Furthermore, A. barbatulus Viets, 1936 and A. brachypus Viets, 1936 represent new records for the Turkish fauna. Males of A. natangensis Protz, 1900, a species previously known in the country from a single female specimen, are recorded from Türkiye for the first time.

In this study, water mites belonging to genera Albaxona, Barbaxonella, Javalbia, Ljania, Paraxonopsis, Parabrachypoda, Vicinaxonopsis and Woolastookia collected from a total of 10 provinces in Eastern Anatolia and the Eastern Black Sea are evaluated. Ljania longissima Schwoerbel, 1962, Woolastookia minuta Pešić, Gerecke & Smit, 2010 and Vicinaxonopsis iranica Pesic, Jabaleh & Saboori, 2009 are new records for Türkiye. The first description of females of Barbaxonella taurusensis Boyacı, Gülle & Didinen, 2012, V. iranica Pesic, Jabaleh & Saboori, 2009, W. minuta Pešić, Gerecke & Smit, 2010, and the male of L. longissima Schwoerbel, 1962 are given. Furthermore, a total of 26 COI new barcodes were generated, corresponding morphologically to five species, two of them (Javalbia turcica Esen, Pešić & Erman, 2011 and Barbaxonella taurusensis) are uploaded for the first time in the Barcode of Life Data Systems (BOLD).

Pontarachnidae, the only family of Hydrachnidia inhabiting marine environments, utilize diverse dispersal mechanisms to inhabit broad geographic ranges. Recent molecular studies in semi-enclosed basins, such as the Mediterranean and Red Seas, have challenged the dispersal capabilities of species like Litarachna communis and Pontarachna punctulum, which were previously assumed to be widely distributed. In this study, we employed an integrative taxonomic approach to examine pontarachnid mites from the Indian Ocean. We describe a new species, Litarachna almiri sp. nov., identified from both Mauritius and Thailand. This disjunct distribution, spanning nearly 5,500 km, demonstrates that mites within the Indian Ocean, a fully integrated component of the global ocean system, can achieve significant long-distance dispersal. Additionally, we provide the first molecular confirmations for Litarachna denhami (Kenya), L. triangularis (Thailand), and Pontarachna cf. australis (Kenya). These findings emphasize the necessity of further taxonomic clarification and molecular analysis of type-locality material to resolve the distribution patterns of marine mites accurately.

The diversity of Pontarachnidae, the only family of hydrachnid mites occurring in marine environments, remains poorly documented morphologically and molecularly in the Mediterranean Sea and adjacent marine ecosystems, including the Red Sea. Using an integrative taxonomic approach, we described two new species: Litarachna cypriotica sp. nov. from the eastern Mediterranean (Cyprus) and Pontarachna goldschmidti sp. nov. from the Red Sea (Egypt). Interspecific K2P genetic distances exceeded 17% for both new species. Species boundaries were consistently supported across all applied species delimitation analyses. In addition, the presence of Litarachna smiti Pešić, Chatterjee & Ahmed Abada, 2008 was molecularly confirmed for Egypt for the first time, and Pontarachna punctulum Philippi, 1840 was proposed to be removed from the list of Red Sea pontarachnid mites. This study underscores the largely unexplored diversity of pontarachnid mites and highlights the importance of molecular approaches in elucidating the evolutionary mechanisms underlying this diversity.

The River Habitat Survey (RHS) is a method used to assess the condition of river channels and valleys by considering hydromorphological factors. It evaluates the degree of naturalness or anthropogenic alterations based on physical and landscape data. The study hypothesized that the quality of river habitats, as demonstrated by the RHS, should correlate with the composition of aquatic bugs (Heteroptera) fauna. The research was conducted in the River Krąpiel, a small lowland river in north-western Poland, across 6 sites and 43 sub-sites. Our analyses suggest that the RHS method can predict the composition and quality of aquatic bug fauna. Other indicators, such as the Habitat Quality Assessment (HQA) and the Riverine Habitat Quality Index (RHQI), are associated with different habitat types. Depending on the geographic location and river type, these indicators may reflect differences between habitats associated with the mainstream river and mineral substrates versus those covered by vegetation with relatively slow water flow. Linking the size and character of the river, RHS may be a good method for estimating the water bug fauna.

This study identified water mites collected from coastal streams in the provinces of Rize and Trabzon, which flow directly into the Black Sea, using both molecular and morphological approaches. A total of 42 COI barcodes were generated and clustered into 19 BINs, corresponding morphologically to 15 species. Two species, Hygrobates turani sp. nov. and Atractides karadenizensis sp. nov. (Hygrobatidae), are described as new to science, while Sperchon milisai Pešić, 2022, and Hygrobates grabowskii Pešić, Saboori, Zawal & Dabert, 2019, are newly reported from Türkiye. The study demonstrates that only a small fraction of Türkiye’s water mite diversity can currently be identified using existing DNA-barcode libraries, highlighting the need for their further expansion and refinement in future research.