''Meristaspis'' is a genus of mites in the family Spinturnicidae. There are about six described species in ''Meristaspis'', found in

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

, the Middle East,

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, and the

Pacific islands Collectively called the Pacific Islands, the islands in the Pacific Ocean are further categorized into three major island groups: Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia. Depending on the context, the term ''Pacific Islands'' may refer to one of se ...

. The species of ''Meristaspis'', like the other members of this family, are parasites of

bats Bats are mammals of the order Chiroptera.''cheir'', "hand" and πτερόν''pteron'', "wing". With their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals capable of true and sustained flight. Bats are more agile in flight than most bi ...

. They live primarily on the wing and tail membranes of bats throughout all stages of life.

Species

These six species belong to the genus ''Meristaspis'': * ''

Meristaspis calcarata ''Meristaspis'' is a genus of mites in the family Spinturnicidae. There are about six described species in ''Meristaspis'', found in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Australia, and the Pacific islands. The species of ''Meristaspis'', like the ot ...

'' (Hirst, 1923) * '' Meristaspis jordani'' (Radford, 1947) * '' Meristaspis kenyaensis'' (Radford, 1947) * '' Meristaspis lateralis'' (Kolenati, 1856) * '' Meristaspis macroglossi'' (Hirst, 1923) * '' Meristaspis mindanaoensis'' Delfinado & Baker, 1963

References

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