title: Unstable microhabitats (merocenoses) as specific habitats of Uropodina mites (Acari: Mesostigmata).
abstract: Unstable microhabitats (merocenoses)--such as decayed wood, ant hills, bird and mammal nests--constitute an important component of forest (and non-forest) environments. These microhabitats are often inhabited by specific communities of invertebrates and their presence increases the total biodiversity. The primary objective of the present study was to compare communities of Uropodina (Acari: Mesostigmata) inhabiting soil and unstable microhabitats in order to explore the specificity of these communities and their importance in such ecosystems. Uropodine communities inhabiting merocenoses are often predominated by one or two species, which constitute more than 50 % of the entire community. Many species occur commonly in particular merocenoses, but are absent or rare in soil and litter, for example, Allodinychus flagelliger, Metagynella carpatica, Oplitis alophora, and Phaulodiaspis borealis. The biology of Uropodina inhabiting unstable microhabitats is modified by the adaptations required for living in such habitats. Mites associated with merocenoses developed special dispersal mechanisms, such as phoresy, which enable them to migrate from disappearing environments. Communities of Uropodina in soil and litter predominately consisted of species which reproduce parthenogenetically (thelytoky), whereas in merocenoses bisexual species prevail.
authors.affiliation: Department of General Zoology, Faculty of Biology, Adam Mickiewicz University, ul. Umultowska 89, 61-614, Poznan, Poland. agan@amu.edu.pl
authors.forename: Agnieszka
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Napierała
authors.forename: Jerzy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Błoszyk
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017753:Ecosystem; D008925:Mites / Q000145:classification / Q000502:physiology*; D011157:Population Dynamics; D013045:Species Specificity
references.citation: Exp Appl Acarol. 2009 Dec;49(4):291-303
references.pmid: 19326248