Dragonflies (Odonata) From The Sierras Of Tapirapeco And Unturan, In The Extreme South Of Venezuela
Author
DeMarmels, Jurg
text
Acta Biologica Venezuelica
1992
14
1
57
78
journal article
26316
10.5281/zenodo.3266063
39c9ce8d-d95d-467e-9590-ab184d952201
3266063
Megapodagrion
megalopus
(SELYS, 1862)
Figures 11-12
Material.
7♂
,
1 ♀
, Base Camp
.
Remarks. All specimens were taken in the forest, far from water, flying close to the ground or sitting on sticks or stemlets of low growing plants. The larval habitat is unknown. but might not be lotic.
Megapodagrion
Selys
sensu stricto
is monoty pic. Those species included in
Allopodagrion
Forster
, currentlv considered a subgenus of the former, differ in many important features from
M
.
megalopus
.
Therefore I think that full generic rank for
Allopodagrion
,
as originally assigned to by
Forster (1910)
, is clearly justified. The strongest argument for doing so is given by penis morphology: The penis of
Megapodagrion
is lestine (Fig. 11-12), while that of
Allopodagrion
is typically megapodagrionine (
Figs. 13-14
) with two conspicuos cornua as have, for example,
Dimeragrion
Calvert, Heteragrion Selys
,
Oxystigma Williamson,
Philogenia
Selys
and
Sciotropis
Racenis. Petiolation
of wings ceases far distad from cux in
Megapodagrion
,
but very close to, or even proximally of cux in
Allopodagrion
. Megapodgrion
has two supplementary sectors between IR2 and R3 and two more between R3 and IR3 whiIe
Ailopodagrion
has only one in each space. The fore wings are shorter than the hind wings in
Megapodagrion
but equal or longer in
Allopodagrion
.
Adult
Megapodagrion
are mottled with brown, the two apical abdominal segments are in thtl male densely covered with white pruinescence Adult
Allopodagrion
are black with blue patches on the mesepisterna, which might be covered by blue pruinescence, tip of abdomen has no pruinescence. The larval habitat of
Megapodagrion
is unknown, but adults are found in lowland rain forest away from running water flying close to the ground. All species of
Allopodagrion
are instead breeding in small mountain creeks in partly open or closed forest and do not abandon the water courses. It seems, therefore, that besides of the long legs,
Allopodagrion
does not share more characters with
Megapodagrion
than with
Philogenia
or with any other of the compared genera