Brachypoda versicolor - microcosmos.nl

male

female

Brachypoda versicolor
0.5 mm

Although this species is common in many places in the Netherlands, it took me years to find a few specimens: they are small dots that you can hardly see without magnification, in the mud and plants from the landing net. The picture on the left is a 10x magnification and that is approximately the image in a good magnifying glass. On a branch of water-milfoil are a few females, at the bottom a male. The males seem scarcer: I found only one specimen, among more than ten females. The inset in the lower right corner shows the same image in actual size on an average computer screen. Perhaps that helps to understand that this little mite is not well known.
Brachypoda means: with short legs. The legs of this mite are indeed no longer than the body. But because they are provided with swimming hairs, it is still a fast and agile swimmer.

Despite their good swimming ability, I saw the mites spend most of their time walking on aquatic plants:

The hind legs are not used when walking, the mite then lets them drag. Piersig (1897, p.588) also saw this, as appears from his detailed description of this species, as did Viets (1936), who for that matter wrote that the mites prefer to walk on the soil.

Photos below: the appearance is peculiar, different from for example Hydrachna , Limnesia and Piona, which are more spherical. Brachypoda is flattened, in the male (left) the rear part has a shallow cavity:

The photos above are all from the dorsal side. As a result, the palps are not clearly visible. The palps have a typical shape, with a spatula-shaped widening of the fourth segment, as can be seen in this photo below, from the ventral side:

male

female

The mouth region has a red spot.

Click on one of the pictures below to see another page about Brachypoda versicolor.

Brachypoda versicolor female, swimming 29-05-2011

this page (1)

Brachypoda versicolor female, detail front side 27-06-2011

page 2

Brachypoda versicolor female, detail posterior side 27-06-2011

pagina 3

page 4

Brachypoda versicolor male, ventral side 17-07-2011

page 5

BIBLIOGRAPHY: See also the BIBLIOGRAPHY watermites.

Mitchell, R. (1957): The mating behavior of pionid water mites. The American Midland Naturalist 58:360-366.

Motaş, C. (1928) Contrubution à la connaissance de Hydracariens Français, particuliérement du Sud-Est de la France. Trav. Labor. Piscicult. Univ. Grenoble 20 1-373

Olomski, R. (2012) Mating and spermatophore morphology of the freshwater mite Brachypoda versicolor (Müller, 1776) (Acari: Hydrachnidia, Aturidae) SOIL ORGANISMS Volume 84 (2) 2012 pg. 423-430.
Retrieved 2011 from: http://www.senckenberg.de/files/content/forschung/publikationen/soilorganisms/volume_84_2/03_artikel_olomski_r.pdf.
and om 13-10-2024 from: https://soil-organisms.org/index.php/SO/article/view/273/263

Piersig, R. (1897). Deutschlands Hydrachniden. Stuttgart. Zoologica 19 (22). 588.
Retrieved 2011 from: http://www.archive.org/details/zoologischerjahr1899staz

Viets,K (1936). Wassermilben oder Hydracarina (Hydrachnellae und Halacaridae). Spinnentiere oder Arachnoidea VII. In: F. Dahl, Die Tierwelt Deutschlands, pg. 368, 369

back to: W A T E R M I T E S

COPYRIGHT:

All pictures on this site were made by Gerard Visser (Aadorp, Netherlands), unless stated otherwise. All rights remain with him. These pictures may not be used for purposes any other than private viewing or printing. Do NOT hardlink to these pictures or place them on other websites without the author's approval. Should you need them for purposes which include third parties, you must ask the author permission by e-mail. People, who want to use this pictures for exhibitions or publications or educative material are much encouraged to do so, after approval as mentioned and giving the normal credits.