New mites in the family caeculidae

In a collection of arachnids from the southwestern part of the United States made by the author and his wife, Dorothea, was a series of the little known mites of the family Caeculidae. These are fairly large mites measuring up to 1.6 mm. The common name of rake-legged mites is derived from the characteristic large spines on the front legs. Most of the specimens were taken in quite arid country from sweepings of shrubs and other low plants and from debris beneath. In addition to this material from the southwest, Dr. Willis J. Gertsch of the American Museum of Natural History very kindly loaned a collection from the southern part of the United States and from Puerto Rico. The types designated in this paper except as indicated otherwise are deposited in the zoological collection of the University of Utah.