Chelonacarus elongatus n. gen., n. sp. (Acari: Cloacaridae) from the cloaca of the green turtle Chelonia mydas (Cheloniidae).

Chelonacarus elongatus n. gen., n. sp. is proposed for a cheyletoid mite (Acari: Prostigmata) of the family Cloacaridae found in the cloacal tissue of the endangered green turtle Chelonia mydas Linnaeus, 1758 from the Atlantic coast of the Republic of Panama. In females, the new genus is distinguished from other genera of turtle cloacarids by the elongate slender shape of the idiosoma, the shape and pattern of sclerotization of the dorsal shield, and the fused distal ends of apodemes II. A combination of other features that distinguish the newly proposed genus is the smooth surface of the pedipalps, single dorsal spine on tibiae I-IV, no setae on coxa IV, terminal position of the vulva, and the strongly developed pair of ventral spines on tarsi I-II. This is the first record of cloacarids from sea turtles. The similarity of adult cloacarids in the genus Chelonacarus from sea turtles (Chelonioidea) and Cloacarus Camin et al., 1967 from snapping turtles (Chelydridae) lends support to the hypothesis of some paleontologists that these 2 groups of turtles are linked phylogenetically.