Aeschnosoma yelenae, Fleck & Mézière, 2024

Fleck, Günther & Mézière, Nicolas, 2024, Aeschnosoma yelenae sp. nov. from French Guiana (Odonata: Corduliidae), with notes on its phylogenetic affinities and bionomics, Zootaxa 5555 (3), pp. 443-450 : 444-446

Aeschnosoma yelenae sp. nov.

( Figures 1–10 )

Material. Holotype ♂: France, French Guiana, Sinnamary , Crique Malmanoury - PK87 - route de Kourou (5.161, -52.894), 06.XII.2015, N. Mézière leg.

Etymology. The first author is proud to dedicate this species to his niece Yelen Fleck in celebration of reaching her majority. Yelen is also a name associated with the Sun: it is a forename used in the African Bambara language meaning “sunlight”, and independently also a forename derived from the Greek heílē, sunshine/Sun’s heat. Therefore, the name of the new species is correspondingly linked to the name of its closely allied A. heliophila (from the Greek hêlios, the Sun, and philos, friend).

Description

Medium-sized Anisoptera, mostly coloured with brown, blackish brown and reddish brown, somewhat shiny but lacking green or blue metallic reflections, and almost entirely lacking lemon-yellow markings ( Figs 1, 2 ).

Head. Eyes touch over a long distance dorsally (1.6 mm), blue and green in dorsal part on living insect ( Figs 1–3 ); labium light brown; labrum orangish brown with two lateral dark brown diffuse lunular marks, clypeus and frons brown to reddish dark brown; vertex prominent, reddish dark brown, distinctly bilobed, lobes subconical ( Fig. 3 ); antennal pedicel elongated, about 2.5 times as long as wide, basal half brown and distal half blackish with thick long setae, flagellum blackish, very long and thin (ca 2 mm); occiput dark brown; posterolateral margin of eyes with “corduliid” evagination poorly developed.

Thorax. Prothorax yellowish brown, with posterodorsal margin bearing sparse, minute setae; synthoracic pleura rather uniformly coloured, brown to reddish-brown, lacking lemon-yellow spots but with thin small pale line at mesepisternal median dorsal carina, and with ill-defined small pale spot on dorsal mesepisternum close to humeral suture (mesothoracic suture separating episternum and epimeron), and on mesinfraepisternum bordering mesepisternum ( Figs 1, 2 ); synthoracic terga brown to dark brown with lemon-yellow longitudinal rectangular mark on mesonotum and two lateral lemon-yellow spots on postmesonotum ( Fig. 4 ); legs thin and markedly long ( Fig. 2 ), metathoracic legs reaching middle of S5 when fully extended, mostly brown with tarsi and claws dark brown; metafemora distinctly more robust than pro- and mesofemora; flexor surface of meso- and metafemora with longitudinal rows of short black spines, subequal in length, directed towards apex; apical sublateral spine distinctly stronger and longer than other spines also present; all tibiae with keels, that of the prothoracic leg strongly reduced, occupying less than distal 1/5, that of the mesothoracic leg rather short, occupying less than distal 1/4, and that of the metathoracic leg strongly developed and occupying more than distal 4/5 of the tibia length; tarsal claws moderately developed and with ventral tooth rather poorly developed and situated at about distal 2/3 of the claw.

Wings ( Fig. 4 ). Hyaline, very slightly enfumed, with base having slight ill-defined yellowish tinge, and with veins dark brown to black; membranule yellowish to light brown; pt short and dark brown with distal margin slightly more oblique than proximal one; left FW Ax 19 of the first rank (between C and ScP) and 17 of the second rank (between ScP and RA); right FW Ax 17 (first rank) + 17 (second rank); FW 8 (left) and 9 (right) proximal antenodals of the first rank aligned with those of the second rank, but only Ax1 and Ax2 distinctly reinforced and bracketlike; HW Ax 12+12, with those of first rank and those of the second rank aligned, and, except for the most distal one, reinforced and bracketlike; FW Px 10 (left) or 9 (right); HW Px 11; cross veins distal to pt 2; anterior part of arculus at the level of Ax2, or very slightly distal (left HW); FW sectors of arculus jointed at base and close over a short distance; HW sectors of arculus jointed for a short distance and close over a long distance; FW hypertriangles with three crossveins; HW hypertriangles with one (left) or two (right) crossvein(s); FW discoidal triangles and subtriangles 3-celled; HW discoidal triangle with two distinct cells (an additional minute cell, hardly visible without magnification, present in posterior angle of left triangle); HW subtriangles simple (not crossed); FW subdiscoidal spaces with 3 crossveins, HW subdiscoidal spaces with 1 crossvein (CuP); Rspl well defined and covering one row of 6 cells on FW and one row of 9–10 cells on HW; Mspl less distinct than Rspl, covering one row of 5 cells on FW and on HW; FW discoidal field parallel to the level of emergence of RP3/4 then widening strongly; anal loop with 22–23 cells; anal triangle rather large, crossed by oblique vein; anal angle (tornus) not strongly marked and with several minute spines; dorsal anteroproximal angle of anal triangle (AAa/[AAb+AP] bifurcation) with strong spine perpendicular to wing plane.

Abdomen. Dark brown—turning blackish dorsally in some parts—to reddish brown and without pale markings ( Figs 1, 2 ); semicylindrical, in lateral view with S1–2 and proximal part of S3 somewhat enlarged, with distal part of S3 and proximal part of S4 very slightly narrowed, and with S10 showing a rather strong ventral and narrow development; lateral carina extending from S4 to basal half of S9. Secondary accessory genitalia with small genital lobe and with large posterior hamule (as in Fig. 5 ), this last having notably, in lateral view, 1) a well-developed dark brown inner lobe with marked anterior curvature and rounded apex, 2) a brown outer lobe bearing a strong anterior straight spur and a moderately developed posterior hump, spur and hump being connected by a straight margin, and 3) a posterior brush of very long and strong setae. Vesica spermalis (as in Figs 6–8 ) with basal segment (V1) enormously developed in comparison to other segments, V2 short, not bent and with distinct hook at 6/10 to 7/10, V3 elongated, longer than V4, and V4 elongated largely membranous with a small right, apical, lateral flap. Ventral part of S7 and S8 without longitudinal brush of long setae (minute and sparse setae visible on ventral anterior part of S8). Cerci shaped like hockey stick, having distal half gradually flattened with apical dorsal flat surface membranous, and ending ventrally in clump of strong long setae; brown at base turning blackish on ventral side and dark brown on dorsal side with distal membranous surface pale brown ( Figs 9–10 ); cerci divergent and slightly upwardly directed in proximal 8/10, distally (2/10 of length) strongly convergent at right angles and directed downward ( Figs 9–10 ); epiproct mainly dark brown, short and thin, smoothly curved in lateral view, with long setae on lateral border and ventrally and with pair of dark minute apical spines, very close together and fused at base ( Figs 9–10 ).

Measurements (mm): Total length (including anal appendages) 61.5, hind wing length 41; length of hind femur 8.5; length of abdomen (including anal appendages) 46.5; anal appendages 3.7.

Female and larva unknown.

Figures

FIGURES 1–5. Aeschnosoma yelenae sp. nov. 1. General habitus, dorsal view. 2. General habitus, left lateral view. 3. Head, dorsal view. 4. Wings, dorsal view. 5. Secondary genitalia, left lateral view.

FIGURES 6–8. Vesica spermalis: 6—a) ventral view (anterior on the left side) b) detail of the anterior half, 7—a) right lateral view (anterior on the left side) b) detail of the anterior half, 8—a) left lateral view (anterior on the right side) b) detail of the anterior half

FIGURES 9–15. 9–10. Aeschnosoma yelenae sp. nov. Posterior abdominal segments and caudal appendages: 9—dorsal view, 10—left lateral view. 11. Aeschnosoma heliophila. Hamule posteriores in right lateral view. 12. Aeschnosoma auripennis. Vesica spermalis in right lateral view. 13–14. S10 and anal appendages in dorsal view: 13—Aeschnosoma auripennis, 14— Aeschnosoma heliophila. 15. Type locality of Aeschnosoma yelenae. The red ellipse depicts the spot where the holotype was flying and caught.