Oribatid Mites (Acari: Oribatida) in Native and Exotic Forests of the Lower North Island of Aotearoa New Zealand

Oribatid mites (Acari: Oribatida) are important soil decomposers and bioindicators that are not well studied in New Zealand. We report the findings on assemblages of oribatid mites associated with native broadleaf‐podocarp forests and exotic Pinus radiata plantations at 12 sites in the lower North Island of New Zealand. The abundance, species richness and community composition were analysed in relation to forest type and Land Environments of New Zealand (LeNZ) classification. A total of 189 species of oribatid mites belonging to 60 families were collected in soil and litter at 12 sites; this represents ∼40% of all Oribatida species that are recorded in NZ. Species richness and abundance of Oribatida were significantly higher in pine plantations (on average 56 species/site and 67,300.00 ind. m −2 ) than in broadleaf‐podocarp forests (51 species/site and 59,900.00 ind. m −2 ). Local LeNZ environment had no influence on abundance or species richness of oribatid mites. Significant differences in Oribatida assemblages between native and pine forests were observed at the level of species and at the level of families. A list of identified oribatid mites is provided, with notes on global species distribution. The majority of these species have been reported from NZ only (102 species), from wider Australasia (eight species) or from Sub‐Antarctic (four species); few are more characteristic of tropical and subtropical areas. A number of species (especially abundant in pine plantations) were cosmopolitan or semi‐cosmopolitan. Only few of these species have been reported previously in Manawatū‐Whanganui; this is the first record of entire assemblages. The paper demonstrates the need for faunistic inventories of invertebrates in NZ forests.