''Tydeus grabouwi'' is a species of

mite Mites are small arachnids (eight-legged arthropods). Mites span two large orders of arachnids, the Acariformes and the Parasitiformes, which were historically grouped together in the subclass Acari, but genetic analysis does not show clear evid ...

belonging to the family

Tydeidae Tydeidae is a family of acariform mites. As of 2016, it contained over 300 species in three subfamilies, though more species have been discovered since then. These mites live in a wide range of habitats and there are predatory, fungivorous a ...

. This oval, eyeless mite is around 400

μm The micrometre ( international spelling as used by the International Bureau of Weights and Measures; SI symbol: μm) or micrometer (American spelling), also commonly known as a micron, is a unit of length in the International System of Uni ...

in length with a soft body covered in striations. All the legs are shorter in length than the body. It has been recorded from a wide range of plants in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring count ...

References

*New species of mites of the families Tydeidae and Labidostommidae (Acarina: Prostigmata) collected from South African plants Magdelena K.P. Meyer & P.A.J. Ryke Acarologia vol I Trombidiformes Animals described in 1959 Arthropods of South Africa {{Trombidiformes-stub