Cryptoperla cunicidata, Mo & Liu & Wang & Li & Murányi, 2021

Mo, Raorao, Liu, Ruijun, Wang, Guoquan, Li, Weihai & Murányi, Dávid, 2021, Two new and one poorly known species of the Cryptoperla formosana species group (Plecoptera: Peltoperlidae) from China, Zootaxa 5032 (2), pp. 237-246 : 240-244

Cryptoperla cunicidata sp. nov.

( Figs. 2b , 4‒5 , 6a )

Adult habitus ( Figs. 2b , 4a ). General body color brown. Biocellate, distance between ocelli about twice the diameter of the ocellus. Head brown and hairy, with a large, dark brown subtriangular area interrupted by M-line; compound eyes black; antennae and palpi brown. Pronotum dark brown, rectangular, with distinct, symmetrical brown rugosities and a pale median band. Wing membrane brownish, veins brown; legs brown. Abdominal segments mostly pale brown.

Male ( Figs. 4b‒4d , 5 , 6a ). Forewing length ca. 12.2 mm. Hindwing ca. 11.2 mm. Tergum 10 posteromedially with a triangular process ( Fig. 5a ). Basal cercal segment ca. 7 times longer than basal width; with fringe of long bristles along the apical half of inner margin, being more dense towards the apex; apex of basal segment curved dorsad but not swollen in lateral view, and armed with a single, slender dark red spur extending to posterior margin of segment 4, the spur is with a distinct, bald stalk, slightly curved outward and has a sharp tip ( Figs. 4d , 5a, 5d ). Vesicle of sternum 9 ca. 1.3 times longer than wide ( Figs. 5b‒c ). Aedeagus ( Figs. 4b ‒ac, 5a, 5c‒5d, 6a): membra- nous, rabbit-shaped in ventral view ( Figs. 5c , 6a ); basal half naked and trapezoidal; apical half ventrally with a pair of short spherical lobes, laterally with a pair of long cylindrical lobes between which have fine, brown marginal hairs at base, and dorsally with a large, naked spherical lobe, ca. half as long as cylindrical lobes. On Figs. 4b , 5a, 5d , the dorsal lobe is broken by contents, but apical margin is clear.

Female. Unknown.

Type material. Holotype: male ( HIST), China: Guangdong Province, Shaoguan City, Ruyuan Yao Autonomous County, Nanling National Forest Park , 617.2‒814.5 m, 24.92001 N, 113.03001 E, 2020.IX.10, leg. Raorao Mo.

Etymology. The name refers to the rabbit-shaped aedeagus ( Figs. 5c , 6a ). Latin “cunicidus” means rabbit.

Distribution. China: Guangdong Province, known only from the type locality in the Nanling Mts. Our specimen was collected at Peacock Waterfall of the Nanling Mts. The waterfall is located in a canyon at a low elevation ( Fig. 6c ).

Remarks. The two new species, Cryptoperla bicornata sp. nov. and C. cunicidata sp. nov. share similar cerci and tergum 10, but in C. cunicidata , the tip of cercal spur is stalked, and slightly curved outward, the proportions of the basal cercomere are different, and apically not swollen. Additionally, they can be easily separated by head and pronotum patterns and by different aedeagus morphology.

In addition, these two new species share a single, sharp and slender spur of the basal cercal segment with C. akha Stark, 1989 , C. formosana ( Okamoto, 1912) , C. ishigakiensis ( Kawai, 1968) , and C. stilifera Sivec, 1995 . Both new species can be distinguished from the latter four species as follows: in C. akha , the cercal spur is curved medially, its apical half being transparent and its head pattern is indistinct; in C. formosana , the aedeagus has a pair of ventral setal patches and the cercal spur is curved medially; in C. ishigakiensis the cercal spur is strongly bent medially with the medial margin of apical half of basal cercal segment lacking long bristles; in C. stilifera , the cercal spur is thicker and longer extending to segment 6 of the cerci.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Male adult habitus, dorsal view. a. Cryptoperla bicornata sp. nov. b. Cryptoperla cunicidata sp. nov.

FIGURE 4. Cryptoperla cunicidata sp. nov. (male). a. Head and pronotum, dorsal view. b. Aedeagus and left cercus after being cleared, dorsal view. c. Aedeagus, lateral view. d. Cerci, dorsal view.

FIGURE 5. Cryptoperla cunicidata sp. nov. (male). a. Terminalia and aedeagus, dorsal view. b. Vesicle, lateral view. c. Terminalia and aedeagus, ventral view. d. Terminalia and aedeagus, oblique lateral view.

FIGURE 6. a. Aedeagus of Cryptoperla cunicidata sp. nov., ventral view. b. Type locality of C. bicornata sp. nov., Long Yu Bay Scenic Area. c. Type locality of C. cunicidata sp. nov., Nanling National Forest Park.