Description of Ixodes lanigeri sp. nov., a new hard tick species (Acari, Ixodidae) collected from mouse-eared bats (Vespertilionidae, Myotis) in Vietnam

Historically, for more than one and a half centuries, only one so-called "long-legged bat tick" species, i.e., <i>Ixodesvespertilionis</i> Koch was known to science. However, during the past decade, it was recognized on a molecular basis that long-legged ixodid ticks associated with bats may represent at least six species. Of these, until recently, five have been morphologically described. In this study, <i>Ixodes</i> ticks were collected from two <i>Myotis</i> species in southeastern Asia, Vietnam. Based on the morphological and molecular characteristics of the female, nymph and larva, <i>Ixodeslanigeri</i> Hornok, <b>sp. nov.</b> is described here. The male is unknown. Like other members of the <i>Ixodesariadnae</i> complex, <i>I.lanigeri</i> Hornok apparently shows a preference for vesper bats as its typical hosts. In this context, host-association and geographical separation may explain the evolutionary divergence of <i>I.lanigeri</i> Hornok from its closest relative occurring on <i>Murinahilgendorfi</i> Peters in East Asia, Japan, because no <i>Myotis</i> or <i>Murina</i> spp. have overlapping distribution between Vietnam and the main islands of Japan. On the other hand, supposing that (similarly to <i>I.ariadnae</i>) <i>I.lanigeri</i> Hornok probably occurs on other myotine bats and knowing that several <i>Myotis</i> species indigenous in Vietnam have a broad geographical range in southern and southeastern Asia, the new tick species most likely has a widespread distribution in this area.