Scientists led by Dr Vladimir Pešić of the University of Montenegro have discovered a new species of pontarachnid mite in Bajo de Sico – a mesophotic coral reef ecosystem in Mona Passage off Puerto Rico – and named it Litarachna lopezae after the famous Puerto Rican singer Jennifer Lopez.

“The reason behind the unusual choice of name for the new species is that Jennifer Lopez’s songs and videos kept the team in a continuous good mood when writing the manuscript and watching World Cup Soccer 2014,” explained Dr Pešić.

Litarachna lopezae represents Pontarachnidae, a widely distributed but still unstudied group of marine animals. Nothing is known about the life cycle of these animals.

The species was collected from nearly 70 m depth, the greatest depth from which pontarachnid mites have been found until now.

Mesophotic coral ecosystems like Bajo de Sico where Litarachna lopezae was found are light-dependent habitats dominated by macroalgae, sponges and scleractinian corals and are found on the insular and continental slopes of Caribbean islands between 30 and 100 m.

Even at the lower depth range (70-100 m), there is enough light for photosynthesis to take place enhancing the growth of several scleractinian coral species and algae.

The description of Litarachna lopezae has been published online in the open-access journal ZooKeys.

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Pešić V et al. 2014. A new species of Litarachna (Acari, Hydrachnidia, Pontarachnidae) from a Caribbean mesophotic coral ecosystem. ZooKeys 425: 89–97; doi: 10.3897/zookeys.425.8110