Acarological Diversity and Phylogenetics

The Acari, encompassing mites and ticks, represent one of the most species-rich radiations of Chelicerata, with over 55 000 described taxa and many more awaiting discovery. They occupy virtually every terrestrial and aquatic habitat, from forest litter and soil to freshwater and marine littoral zones, and include free-living decomposers, plant feeders, predators and obligate parasites. Acarological diversity is remarkable not only in species richness but in morphological and ecological innovation, ranging from minute phytophagous eriophyoid mites that induce galls on host plants to specialised marine-associated oribatid taxa. Phylogenetics in this group has advanced rapidly with the integration of molecular markers—mitochondrial genomes, ribosomal RNA genes and multi-gene datasets—with classical morphological characters. These complementary data have resolved high-level relationships within Acariformes, revealed deep divergences dating back to the Triassic, uncovered cryptic speciation and host-driven lineage diversification, and clarified the monophyly or polyphyly of major lineages. Progress in acarological phylogeny underpins practical applications in agriculture, medicine and biodiversity conservation by improving species identification, informing pest management strategies, tracing vector dynamics and guiding taxonomic revisions. Ongoing efforts that combine phylogenomics, ecological data and functional morphology continue to refine our understanding of mite evolution and their pivotal roles in global ecosystems.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent mitogenomic metagenomics have unveiled that oribatid mite lineages in the superfamily traditionally regarded as monophyletic actually form a paraphyletic assemblage. Complete mitochondrial genome sequencing combined with ribosomal RNA markers demonstrated at least three independent land-to-sea transitions into marine littoral habitats. Molecular dating places these invasions in the Triassic–Jurassic, coinciding with major geological events and the breakup of Pangaea. This work refines the evolutionary timeline of coastal colonisation, highlights repeated adaptive radiations, and challenges existing taxonomy by revealing convergent adaptations in sensilla, claw morphology and respiratory plastron structures among disparate clades.

Acarological Diversity and Phylogenetics publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in acarological diversity and phylogenetics across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Acariformes: A suborder of mites characterised by a diverse array of free-living and parasitic species, including Oribatida and Prostigmata.

Mitogenome: The complete genetic complement of mitochondrial DNA, often used for phylogenetic inference and molecular synapomorphy detection.

Monophyly: A group of organisms that includes an ancestral species and all its descendants, indicating a single evolutionary origin.

Paraphyly: A group containing an ancestor and some, but not all, of its descendants, reflecting incomplete lineage inclusion.

Phylogenomics: The analysis of genome-scale data to reconstruct evolutionary relationships among organisms, integrating molecular and structural information.

References

1. Mitochondrial metagenomics reveal the independent colonization of the world’s coasts by intertidal oribatid mites (Acari, Oribatida, Ameronothroidea). Scientific Reports (2024).
2. Phylogenomics resolves the higher-level phylogeny of herbivorous eriophyoid mites (Acariformes: Eriophyoidea). BMC Biology (2024).
3. Origin and higher-level diversification of acariform mites – evidence from nuclear ribosomal genes, extensive taxon sampling, and secondary structure alignment. BMC Ecology and Evolution (2015).