Penthaleus is a genus of earth mites in the family of Penthaleidae, first described by Carl Ludwig Koch in 1835. Members of this genus are found on every continent except Antarctica.Koch, C.L. 1835. Deutschlands Crustaceen, Myriapoden und Arachniden. Ein Beitrag zur Deutschen Fauna. Regensberg : Herrich-Schäffer Vol. 1.
They are a major winter pest of a variety of crops and pastures in southern Australia.
Description Members of Penthaleus can be easily distinguished from other genera within Penthaleidae by the dorsal position of the anus which is surrounded by a distinctive red patch on the otherwise blue-black idiosoma. They often also have red patches near the base of the gnathosoma, and at the anterior of the dorsal idiosoma. Like other genera within Penthaleidae, these mites have solid red legs.
Species Genus Penthaleus consists of 13 species: Penthaleus arcticus Trägårdh, 1901 - Norway Penthaleus bipustulatus (Hermann, 1804) - France and Germany Penthaleus crinitus Narayan, 1957 - Mexico Penthaleus dorsalis (Banks, 1902) - United States Penthaleus erythrocephalus C. L. Koch, 1838 - Germany and Spain Penthaleus falcatus Qin & Halliday, 1996 - New South Wales, Australia Penthaleus fallax (Dugès, 1834) - France Penthaleus guttatus C. L. Koch, 1838 - Germany Penthaleus longipilis (Canestrini, 1886) - England, Italy and Japan Penthaleus major (Dugès, 1834) - Cosmopolitan Penthaleus minor (Canestrini, 1886) - Australia, China, Great Britain, Germany, Iran, Italy and Switzerland Penthaleus saxatilis C. L. Koch, 1836 - Germany Penthaleus tectus Halloway, 2005 - East Australia
References