ORIBATID MITES IN NESTS OF THE LAPLAND BUNTING (CALCARIUS LAPPONICUS) ON THE ARCTIC ISLAND OF VAYGACH (WITH ANALYSIS OF THE ISLAND'S FAUNA)

• Published in: Proceedings of the Karelian Research Centre of the Russian Academy of Sciences
• Main Authors: Elena Melekhina, Alexander Matyukhin, Pyotr Glazov
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English; Russian
• Published: Karelian Research Centre of the Russian Academy of Sciences 2019
• Subjects: arctic; bird nests; oribatida; taxonomic composition; zoogeographical structure; fauna; Science; Q; Arctic; Arctic Island; Vaygach; Tundra; Vaygach Island; Lapland; Mite
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.17076/bg892; https://doaj.org/article/80338d10ad4044b1b0e31a7d338f6f55

In the seven nests of the Lapland Bunting ( Calcarius lapponicus ) collected from the Arctic island of Vaygach, 1348 oribatid mite specimens representing 25 species, 24 genera of 21 families were found. Nine species were found for the first time on this island: Atropacarus striculus (Koch, 1835), Phthiracarus ligneus Willmann, 1931, Eueremaeus oblongus oblongus (Koch, 1835), Gustavia microcephala (Nicolet, 1855), Carabodes areolatus Berlese, 1916, Banksinoma lanceolata (Michael, 1885), Scutovertex minutus (Koch, 1836), Scheloribates laevigatus (Koch, 1835), Trichoribates berlesei (Jacot, 1929). Representatives of seven of these genera: Atropacarus, Eueremaeus, Gustavia, Banksinoma, Scutovertex, Scheloribates, Trichoribates , as well as genera Nothrus and Achipteria , also six families, viz. Nothridae Berlese, 1896; Eremaeidae Sellnick, 1928; Gustaviidae Oudemans, 1900; Thyrisomidae Grandjean, 1953; Scutoverticidae Grandjean, 1954; Scheloribatidae Jacot, 1935, are reported for the island for the first time. The taxonomic list of oribatid mites of Vaygach Island, compiled based on both new data and the available literature, includes 43 species, 34 genera and 25 families. The fauna is mostly composed of Holarctic species (71.0 %), with a significant proportion of Circumpolar species (47.4 %) in it. Species with a polyzonal latitudinal distribution predominate in numbers. The share of Arcto-Boreal species is low; no Arctic species were found. The faunal composition of oribatid mites of Vaygach Island demonstrated a high degree of similarity with the insular fauna of the European sector of the Arctic, as well as with the fauna of continental tundra. The nests of the Lapland Bunting contained four so-called 'southern' species, whose core distribution range is situated at lower latitudes: Phthiracarus ligneus, Eueremaeus oblongus oblongus, Gustavia microcephala, Banksinoma lanceolata.