First observations in Turkish Thrace on water mite larvae parasitism of Ranatra linearis by Hydrachna gallica (Acari: Hydrachnidia)

Many aquatic insect species, including aquatic Hemiptera, are parasitized by water mite larvae. Although this situation may cause damaging impacts to the hosts, the mites can disperse and colonize new localities in this way. Little is known about the frequency of water mite ectoparasitism amongst the aquatic Hemiptera in Turkey. In this study, larval water mite parasitism on aquatic Hemiptera, which have been collected from different localities in Turkish Thrace, was evaluated. It was found that only nine individuals, belonging two different species in a total of 367 hemipteran specimens, were parasitized by larval water mites. Furthermore, variations in sizes and shapes of the mites on the waterscorpion Ranatra linearis Linne, 1758 and Nepa cinerea Linne, 1758 were determined. These are the first records for larval mite parasitism on R. linearis and N. cinerea in Turkish Thrace.