Mites are the most receptive inhabitants of ecosystems, and they are strong interactors, important indicators of disturbances in both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, and major component of biological diversity. They rival the insects in their worldwide diversity, abundance, and ubiquity. (Walter and Proctor 2004). Oribatid mites are the most commonly found and numerically. dominant group of acarine chelicerates and are economically important as they play a vital role in promoting soil fertility (Behan-Pelletier 1997; Bluhm et al. 2015). They play a crucial role in decomposition, nutrient cycling, and soil structure formation. They are valuable bioindicators of soil health, with their communities reflecting changes in the soil environment. They also serve as intermediate hosts for certain tapeworms and contribute to the dispersal of beneficial soil microorganisms like bacteria and fungi (Jászayová et al. 2023). The discovery of 22 new records of Oribatid mites in India, a group of soil-dwelling mites, highlights the hidden diversity within the Indian soil ecosystem. This study done on the basis of a combination of recent field surveys in Deccan Peninsula and the examination of archived specimens housed in the National Zoological Collection, Acarology Section, Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), Kolkata. Each species is accompanied by updated concise remarks on distributional information that compare current findings with earlier literature.
