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Major mite taxa—Key feature pages

arsus I subdivisions and apotele

In mites there are 7 basic leg segments, from the tip to the basebase:
the usually columnar basal part of the tritosternum; sometimes expanded and rectangular or otherwise modified; the most basal part of any structure.
: apoteleapotele:
(Greek apotelein = to complete)—the terminus of an appendage; the most distal leg segment, often consisting of an empodium and a pair of claws. The apotele of a leg is usually treated as equivalent to the pretarsus or some part thereof (e.g., the claws and empodium), but the palptarsal apotele in Mesostigmata is a tined structure originating at the base of the palptarsus and thought to be a remnant of the claws. The chelicerae are also an appendage and terminate in the movable digit.
, tarsustarsus:
(pl. tarsi) the subdistal leg segment between the tibia and the pretarsus (apotele).
, tibiatibia:
(pl. tibiae) the leg segment between the genu and the tarsus.
, genugenu:
(pl. genua) (= patella) the 4th leg segment, between the femur and tibia.
, femurfemur:
(pl. femora) major leg segment between trochanter and genu; often subdivided into a basifemur and a telofemur.
, trochantertrochanter:
the leg segment between the coxa and the femur.
, and coxacoxa:
the basal segment of the leg, articulating with (Parasitiformes) or fused to (Acariformes) the body wall.
. Some of these basic segments, however, may be subdivided. For example, tarsustarsus:
(pl. tarsi) the subdistal leg segment between the tibia and the pretarsus (apotele).
 I may be divided into 2 (basitarsusbasitarsus:
a basal subdivision of the tarsus.
 + telotarsustelotarsus:
(= acrotarsus, apicotarsus) a distal division of the tarsus.  
) or 3 (+acrotarsus) subsegments in some Mesostigmata, or into many subsegments in a few Anystina.

Primitively, the apoteleapotele:
(Greek apotelein = to complete)—the terminus of an appendage; the most distal leg segment, often consisting of an empodium and a pair of claws. The apotele of a leg is usually treated as equivalent to the pretarsus or some part thereof (e.g., the claws and empodium), but the palptarsal apotele in Mesostigmata is a tined structure originating at the base of the palptarsus and thought to be a remnant of the claws. The chelicerae are also an appendage and terminate in the movable digit.
 is present as 3 clawclaw:
like - having a distal hook; resembling a claw.
-like structures, but is more commonly a pair of claws and a pad-likepad-like:
in Prostigmata, used to refer to empodia that do not have a distal hook (claw-like); when tenent hairs are present a 'pad-like' empodium may look more like a pincushion; in other Acari, usually a simple, pad-like empodium.
 to highly modified empodiumempodium:
(pl. empodia) an unpaired structure arising between the tarsal claws, ranging from pad-like to claw-like and often bearing structures such as tenent hairs, dense setulae, or taking the form of a featherclaw (Eriophyoidea)..
 or a single median clawclaw:
like - having a distal hook; resembling a claw.
. In some Mesostigmata, Endeostigmata, and Prostigmata the apoteleapotele:
(Greek apotelein = to complete)—the terminus of an appendage; the most distal leg segment, often consisting of an empodium and a pair of claws. The apotele of a leg is usually treated as equivalent to the pretarsus or some part thereof (e.g., the claws and empodium), but the palptarsal apotele in Mesostigmata is a tined structure originating at the base of the palptarsus and thought to be a remnant of the claws. The chelicerae are also an appendage and terminate in the movable digit.
 on tarsustarsus:
(pl. tarsi) the subdistal leg segment between the tibia and the pretarsus (apotele).
 I has been lost.

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