Family OXIDAE Veits, 1926

Museums

Regional Maps

• Oxidae Viets, K. 1926. Versuch eines Systems der Hydracarinen. Zoologischer Anzeiger 69: 188-199.

Introduction

The Oxidae is a family of aquatic mites that can be found swimming in pools, ponds and lakes world-wide (Walter et al. 2009). Their larvae, where known, are parasites of Chironomidae. Cook (1986) pointed out that the genus-level classification is very unstable, and is likely to change dramatically when the family is thoroughly revised. The Australian fauna includes two genera and 24 species, most of which were included in the key in Cook (1986). Harvey (1998) provided a key to genera, but since that time Di Sabatino et al. (2009) have relegated Frontipoda into synonymy with Oxus, so many of the generic combinations have changed.

General References

Cook, D.R. 1986. Water mites from Australia. Memoirs of the American Entomological Institute 40: 1-568

Di Sabatino, A., Gerecke, R., Gledhill, T. & Smit, H. 2009. On the taxonomy of water mites (Acari: Hydrachnidia) described from the Palaearctic, part 2: Hydryphantoidea and Lebertioidea. Zootaxa 2266: 1–34

Harvey, M.S. 1998. The Australian Water Mites. A Guide to the Families and Genera. Melbourne : CSIRO Publishing 150 pp.

Walter, D.E., Lindquist, E.E., Smith, I.M., Cook, D.R. & Krantz, G.W. 2009. Order Trombidiformes. pp. 233-420 in Krantz, G.W. & Walter, D.E. (eds). A Manual of Acarology. Lubbock, Texas : Texas Tech University Press Third edition, 807 pp.

History of changes