A New Species of <i>Proctolaelaps</i> (Acari: Mesostigmata: Ascoidea: Melicharidae) Associated with Ambrosia Beetles (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae: Xyleborini) in South Florida Avocados

A new species of <i>Proctolaelaps</i> (Acari: Mesostigmata: Melicharidae), <i>Proctolaelaps ambrosiae</i> sp. nov., is described from south Florida, USA, based on adult females found in phoretic association with ambrosia beetles infesting avocado (<i>Persea americana</i>) trees. Mites were removed from adults of <i>Xyleborinus saxesenii</i> and <i>Xyleborus affinis</i> (Coleoptera: Curculionidae: Scolytinae: Xyleborini) captured in flight and were also collected from beetle galleries in infested avocado wood. The new species is diagnosed based on a combination of morphological characters and molecular markers (nuclear 28S rRNA and ITS, and mitochondrial COI), supporting its distinctiveness from related taxa. This study represents the first formal description of a <i>Proctolaelaps</i> species documented in phoretic association with xyleborine ambrosia beetles and their galleries, contributing to the knowledge of melicharid diversity in woody microhabitats and providing baseline data for future ecological and applied studies of ambrosia beetle systems in avocado.