I. TBÄGÅRDH, DISCOMEQISTUS NO V. GEN. 17 



Låter, in liis great work »Acari, Myriopodaet Scorpiones 

 hucusque in Italia reperta» he established a new family, Hete- 

 rozerconidce with the same diagnosis as that of the genus. 



Until 1910 no species or genus was added to the family, 

 but then Berlese described a new species, H. audax, both 

 male and female of which were found by Jacobsson on a 

 Spirostreptus in Java. His short diagnosis — which, considering 

 the data of great systematic value the examination of both 

 sexes presumabty would ha ve furnished him with, could cer- 

 tainly have been a little more detailed — throws, how^ever, 

 no light on the systematic affinities of the family. 



Subsequently, in the same year, Berlese established 

 another genus, Discozercon, for a form, also found by Jacobs- 

 son on Myriopods in Java, which he refers to the Hetero- 

 zerconidoe, and which he renames Discozerconidce, a procedure 

 which, however, is not allowed according to the rules of no- 

 menclature. 



The diagnosis of Discozerconidce is as short as possible:^ 

 »Inter Mesostigmata. In utroque sexu adsunt disculi maiores 

 adhgesionis in ventre. Palpi articulo postremo appendiculi- 

 forme.» 



It is to be hopedj however, that it is only a preliminary 

 diagnosis, which will be substituted by a more detailed one, 

 at least when Berlese's to all appearance almost inexhaust- 

 ible supply of new acari begins to give out and he will be 

 able to give us some drawings and more ample descriptions 

 to the already allarming number, of which he has as yet given 

 only »brevi diagnosi». 



In the meantime we are under the necessity of making 

 the best possible use of the descriptions such as they are. 



In the diagnosis of Discozercon Berlese does not mention 

 either the mandibles or the palpi, which is much to be re- 

 gretted, since both these organs in the other genus, Hetero- 

 zercon, have a very characteristic shape; as the character 

 »articulo postremo (palporum) appendiculiforme» is included 

 in the latest diagnosis of the family, we may, however, feel 

 justified in presuming that it is a character also possessed 

 by Discozercon. But wether the låter genus has mandibles 



^ But still, it contains a statenient which cannot be considered as 

 strictly true, viz. »disculi maiores». Because in Heterozercon degeneratus the 

 discs are, as a matter of fact, very small, compared with the surface of belly. 



Arhiv för zoologi. Band 7. N:o 12. 2 



