The National Biodiversity Centre (NBC), in collaboration with researchers from Japan, has documented a new species of oribatid mite from Bhutan, highlighting the country’s rich yet understudied invertebrate diversity.
The newly described species, Achipteria (Achipteria) bhutanica sp. nov., was discovered from forest litter collected during a joint soil fauna survey conducted in Paro and Thimphu. The species belongs to the family Achipteriidae, which is being recorded from Bhutan for the first time.
The discovery is particularly noteworthy as it represents the first published record of an oribatid mite from Bhutan since the 1980s. The study highlights the importance of continued biodiversity exploration and taxonomic research in Bhutan, especially for lesser-known groups such as soil microarthropods.
Specimens of the new species were collected from the litter and humus layers of forest ecosystems near Paro Taktsang (Tiger’s Nest Monastery) and the Royal Takin Preserve in Thimphu. Detailed morphological analyses confirmed that the specimens represent a species previously unknown to science.
Read the full paper here: https://doi.org/10.24349/pocc-d7lm
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