Heteragrion corderoi Vilela, Lencioni & Bispo, 2023

Vilela, Diogo Silva, Lencioni, Frederico A. A., Bota-Sierra, Cornelio A., Ware, Jessica L. & Bispo, Pitágoras C., 2023, Taxonomic revision of the Neotropical genus Heteragrion Selys, 1862 (Zygoptera: Heteragrionidae): male morphology, new species and illustrated key, Zootaxa 5356 (1), pp. 1-96 : 41-43

Heteragrion corderoi Vilela, Lencioni & Bispo , sp. nov.

( Figs. 27a–d )

[Key locator: Key to Group A species, couplet 14 (13)]

Heteragrion mantiqueirae: Machado 2006: 1065–1068 (one specimen designated as a paratype of H. mantiqueirae , with no further details on its morphology).

Holotype. ♁, BRAZIL, São Paulo state, Campos do Jordão, Condomínio Paradise , 24.i.1999, (-22.7072, - 45.5894, 1796m asl), F.A.A. Lencioni leg., UFPA.

Paratypes. 1♁, BRAZIL, São Paulo state, Campos do Jordão , (Coll. before 1975), K. Lenko leg., ABMM (head and right cercus missing, UFMG-IOD-2200149); 8♁♁ same data as holotype, but: 1 ♁, 25.i.1999; 2♁♁ 30.x.1999; 2♁♁ 21.xi.1999; 2♁♁ 14.i.2001; 1♁ 2.i.2005.

Etymology. The species is named in honor of Adolfo Cordero Rivera, a fellow odonatologist and cherished friend, whose invaluable contributions to the fields of ethology and evolution have greatly enhanced our understanding of behavioral patterns and sexual roles in damselflies.

Description of holotype

Head. Black, with the following yellow areas:postocular lobes; on each side below postocular lobes; oval spots lateral to lateral ocelli; genae; lateral areas of postclypeus. Labrum dark brown. Antennae black. Mouthparts yellow.

Thorax ( Figs. 27a–c ). Prothorax light yellow laterally, dark brown to black dorsally; hind lobe black. Pterothorax mostly orange/yellow, with a thick black middorsal carina; mesepisternum orange with a black diffuse basal spot; mesopleural suture pale; mesepimeron and mesinfraepisternum dark brown; remainder of pterothorax yellow. Coxae and trochanter pale; legs light brown.

Wings ( Fig. 27a ). Hyaline, almost reaching S7; venation dark brown; Pt brown with darker contours; Pt overlying 2 cells in Fw, 2 cells in Hw, oblique proximally; 2 Pq cells in all wings; 18 Px in FW, 16 Px in HW.

Abdomen ( Fig. 27a ). S1 mostly pale yellow, with a brown dorsal spot; S2 light brown laterally, with a black dorsal stripe; S3–6 mostly black with paler areas on its lateral 4/5; S7 dark brown; S8 dark brown basally, becoming orange towards its apex; S9–10 orange. S10 with darker dorsal areas.

Anal appendages. Overall brown, with darker basal shades; all portions of cercus subequal in length; BP moderately dilated; MP with a developed ML, bearing a sinuous ridge with small teeth; ML longer than wide, its apex ‘W’ shaped, bilobate. Paraprocts greatly reduced.

Measurements. Fw 30.6; Hw 29.9; Abdomen 39.7; Total 46.5.

Female. Unknown.

Variations in paratypes. Slight differences were observed in relation to anal appendages morphology ( Figs. 27e–f ) and coloration, probably due to aging.

Diagnosis and remarks. While reviewing Machado’s types, we discovered an intriguing result during our examination of the single paratype of H. mantiqueirae , deposited along with the holotype at ABMM (see under H. mantiqueira ’s section for more notes on its holotype). The paratype of H. mantiqueirae , missing the head and right cercus, has greatly distinct cercal morphology, when compared to the holotype (examined by Frederico Lencioni) and other specimens collected by Frederico Lencioni also compared with the holotype. Upon further search for additional specimens, we found nine males in perfect preservation conditions at FAAL’s collection, which we used in the description. The new species can be diagnosed using the following character combination (features of H. mantiqueirae in squared brackets): ML longer than wide ( Fig. 27d ) [wider than long, not greatly developed medially ( Fig. 49c )], ML apex ‘W’ shaped ( Fig. 27d ) [ML apex rounded ( Fig. 49c )], bilobate ( Fig. 27d ) [not bilobate ( Fig. 49c )]. Those features, along with the overall cercal proportions, had convinced us that the specimen assigned as a paratype of H. mantiqueirae was in fact an undescribed species. Coloration is also contrasting on H. corderoi and H. mantiqueirae , with the latter presenting a smaller orange mesepisternal stripenand less darker areas on overall body coloration. On the other hand, coloration has also been proven to be greatly variable in Heteragrion , so this feature is less trustworthy than cercal morphology.

Figures

FIGURE 27. Heteragrion corderoi sp. nov. male holotype: (a) dorsal view of head; (b) lateral view of habitus; (c) lateral view of pterothorax; (d) dorsal view of pterothorax (e–f) mediodorsal view of cercus. BP: basal portion; ML: medial lobe.

FIGURE 49. Heteragrion mantiqueirae: (a) anterior view of head; (b) lateral view of pterothorax; (c) mediodorsal view of cercus; (d) lateral view of cercus; (a) adapted from Machado (2006). MP: medial portion; ML: medial lobe.