title: Soil mites of the families Ascidae, Blattisociidae and Melicharidae (Acari: Mesostigmata) from mountainous areas of Colombia.
abstract: Soil mites of the Ascidae sensu Lindquist & Evans (1965) are poorly known in Colombia. This group, presently represented by the families Ascidae sensu stricto, Blattisociidae and Melicharidae, contains species known to prey on small arthropods and nematodes, thus having the potential to be used for the control of soil pests. The aim of this study was to identify species of this group from a fragment of Andean forest and a nearby grassland at the municipality of La Calera, Cundinamarca Department, Colombia, at about 2800 m of elevation. Nine species were found, including five new species, namely Gamasellodes andinus sp. nov., Gamasellodes intermedius sp. nov., Protogamasellus caleraensis sp. nov., Cheiroseius mesae sp. nov. and Proctolaelaps colombianus sp. nov. Morphological characterisation of all the species and relevant soil characteristics of the sites where the mites were collected are presented.
authors.affiliation: Depto. de Entomologia e Acarologia, Escola Superior de Agricultura "Luiz de Queiroz" (ESALQ)-Universidade de São Paulo (USP), 13418 - 900 Piracicaba, São Paulo, Brazil.; Email: dianaru@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Diana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Rueda-Ramírez
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Ecología de Suelos y Hongos Tropicales, Unidad de Ecología y Sistemática (UNESIS), Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá, Colombia.; Email: avarela@javeriana.edu.co.
authors.forename: Amanda
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Varela
authors.affiliation: CNPq Researcher; Depto. de Entomologia e Acarologia, Escola Superior de Agricultura "Luiz de Queiroz" (ESALQ)-Universidade de São Paulo (USP), 13418 - 900 Piracicaba, São Paulo, Brazil.; Email: moraesg@usp.br.
authors.forename: Gilberto J De
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Moraes
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003105:Colombia; D005260:Female; D008925:Mites / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000145:classification* / Q000502:physiology; D012987:Soil; D013045:Species Specificity
chemical_list: D012987:Soil