Isoperla morenica, Figueroa, José Manuel Tierno De, Gaetani, Brunella, López-Rodríguez, Julio Miguel Luzón-Ortega Manuel Jesús & Fochetti, Romolo, 2011

Figueroa, José Manuel Tierno De, Gaetani, Brunella, López-Rodríguez, Julio Miguel Luzón-Ortega Manuel Jesús & Fochetti, Romolo, 2011, On the identity of Isoperla curtata (Plecoptera: Perlodidae): behavioural and molecular approaches show the existence of two separate species, Zootaxa 3000, pp. 49-58 : 55-57

Isoperla morenica sp. n. Tierno de Figueroa & Luzón-Ortega

Fig. 6

Type material. Holotype male. Spain: Jaén, Sierra Morena, Despeñaperros River, Coordinates: Lat 38.37432 Long -3.50802, altitude 560 m, 4-VI-2007, M.J. López-Rodríguez & J.M. Tierno de Figueroa leg.; Paratypes: Same locality, collection date and collectors, 4 males, 5 females.

The holotype, 2 males and 2 females paratypes are deposited in the Collection of the Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (Madrid, Spain) with the identification codes: MNCN Ent Nº Cat. 71379 for the Holotype and MNCN Ent Nº Cat. 71380 for the Paratypes. The remaining paratypes (2 males and 3 females) are deposited in J. Manuel Tierno de Figueroa’s collection in the Departamento de Biología Animal, Universidad de Granada ( Granada, Spain).

Other material referred. Spain, Badajoz: Puerto de las Marismas, 750 m, 21-IV-1960, 5 nymphs ( Aubert 1963a, b). Sevilla: Río Guadiamar, 300 m, 1979–80 ( Puig & Gallardo 1985); Arroyo Aciago, 300 m, 17-IV-1979, 1 nymphs ( Gallardo Mayenco 1990). Jaén: Sierra Morena, Arroyo del Rey, Órganos de Despeñaperros, 650 m, 26-V- 1959, l male, 25 females, same location, 16-V-1960, 3 males, 3 females; Sierra Morena, Río Guarrizas, 450 m, 26- V-1959, 2 females; same location, 16-V-1960, 2 females; Sierra Morena, Confluence of Río Despeñaperros and Arroyo del Rey, 1-V-1998, 19 males, 30 females (Tierno de Figueroa et al. 2000); Despeñaperros River, 560 m, from I-2007 to VI-2007, many nymphs and adults ( López-Rodríguez et al. 2008, 2009; Sanz et al. 2010). Andalucía: Sierra Morena, Río Panados, Venta del Aire, 700 m, 27-V-5 -1959, male/s ( Aubert 1963a, b). Ciudad Real: Sierra Morena, Arroyo de la Nava del Rey, Jándula basin, 600 m, Coordinates: Lat 38.53031 Long -3.80594, 21-V- 2009, 13 males, 12 females, J.M. Luzón-Ortega leg.

The citations of I. curtata for the Baetic Cordillera (Cádiz and Jaén; southern Spain) referred to below are reported with doubt and must be checked because many of the identifications were made from nymphs before the nymph was described.

Spain, Cádiz: Río Palmones, Algeciras, 50 m; Río Grazalema, Grazalema, 700 m ( Aubert 1963b). Spain, Jaén: Sierra de Cazorla, Río Guadalentín, Nava de San Pedro, 1300 m, 28-V-1959, 5 nymphs; id., 15-V-1962, 32 nymphs ( Aubert 1963a, b) and "Nacimiento del Guadalquivir", 1350 m, 1975–78 (González del Tánago & García de Viedma 1983).

Diagnosis. This large, yellowish-brown species is macropterous in both sexes. Male penial armature is present as a long, flat patch, covered with large, flat, triangular scales with a blunt tip. No accessory armatures are present. The female subgenital plate is broadly semicircular, occupies the median 2/3rd of the sternum, and does not extend to past the posterior edge of the 8th sternum. Nymphs are distinguished by the characteristic light pentagonal-shape interocellar spot.

Male ( Figs. 6 b, 6c & 6d): Forewing: 9.9–11.7 mm, n= 5 (Holotype: 11.2 mm). Total length: 10.9–13.7 mm, n= 5 (Holotype: 10.9 mm). Macropterous. Lobe of the tip of the 8th sternum rectangular (length/width ratio approximately 0.77) and considerably darker, much contrasted with the general yellow colour of the abdomen. General colour yellowish-brown. Head yellow with darker areas forming characteristic pattern ( Fig. 6 a), interocellar area dark except central diamond-shaped pale spot. Pale spot anterior to median ocellus, pale spots median to compound eyes, frontoclypeus light brown, dark bands lateral to pale occipital. Antennae brown, especially in the basal segments. Pronotum light brown, rectangular, vermiculated and darker at both sides, of light brown colour in general, with a centrally interrupted, pigmented line at the anterior and posterior edges. A yellow band in the middle of the pronotum. Mesonotum dark with a yellow area in the anterior third where a central vertical dark line and two lateral horizontal dark bands appear. Metanotum dark. Abdominal tergites brown, paler at the apex. Ventrally, both thorax and abdomen are yellow. Legs yellow with a dorsal brown band. Cerci yellow-brown, palest basally. Paraprocts dark. Penial armature flat, long (length: 0.40–0.50 mm, n= 4; width: 0.12–0.21 mm) slightly narrower at the apex. Scales (length: 0.38–0.43 mm n= 4, width: 0.10–0.13 mm) not mucronated. Accessory armatures absent.

Female ( Fig. 6 e): Forewing: 11.1–13.0 mm. Total length: 12.9–14.7 mm. Macropterous. General colour similar to the male. Subgenital plate curved occupying approximately 2/3 of the sternum width and not covering any part of sternum 9.

Nymph: Refer to that described in López-Rodríguez et al. (2008) under the name I. curtata .

Remarks. The penial armature and scales of I. morenica n. sp. are similar to that described by Aubert (1952, 1956) for I. curtata . Nevertheless, the armature size of I. curtata described by Aubert (1952) for individuals coming from the north-central Iberian Peninsula (0.28 mm length, 0.08 mm width) is smaller than that of I. morenica n. sp.

Habitat and ecology. This species occurs in temporary streams between 450 and 750 m. It emerges in late spring (May or June). For more biological data refer to Tierno de Figueroa et al. (2000) and López-Rodríguez et al. (2009).

Distribution. Spain: this species has been confirmed from the Sierra Morena in the southern Iberian Peninsula. We consider it endemic to southern Spain. The species may also be present in the Baetic Cordillera (southern Iberian Peninsula), but this should be confirmed by future collections of adults.

Etymology. The specific name, morenica , refers to the mountain range from which the species has been collected: Sierra Morena.

Figures

FIGURE 6. Isoperla morenica sp. n. Head and pronotum (a), ventral view of the male abdomen (b), penial armature (c), detail of the penial armature showing the scales (d), and ventral view of the tip of female abdomen (e).