New honeybee mite, Blattisocius trigonae sp. nov. (Acari: Laelapidae), phoretic on Trigona iridipennis (Apidae: Hymenoptera) from Tamil Nadu, India

Abstract

Stingless bee nests are immobile fixtures and potentially long-lived, much like trees in forests where meliponines live. The brood cells are spherical to ovoid, while food storage containers are small to large spheres. Several mite species are associated with stingless bees as phoretic and parasitic relationship. At present, new phoretic female mite, Blattisocius trigonae sp. nov. (Acari: Laelapidae) collected from Trigona iridipennis (Apidae: Hymenoptera) in Tamil Nadu, India is illustrated and described.