Chlorocypha granata Dijkstra

Dijkstra, Klaas-Douwe B., Kipping, Jens & Mézière, Nicolas, 2015, Sixty new dragonfly and damselfly species from Africa (Odonata), Odonatologica 44 (4), pp. 447-678 : 472-473

Chlorocypha granata Dijkstra sp. nov. – Garnet Jewel ( Fig. 2)

Taxonomy

No recent material and thus genetic data for this species is available, but its coloration is distinctive. Confusion is possible with the poorly known C. ghesquierei Fraser, 1959 described also from north-western Congo-Kinshasa. Based on the holotype and topotypical material from Eala in MRAC, the male differs subtly from similar species with (a) an all-red abdominal dorsum; and (b) all black legs; by being (1) fairly small, Hw 21.0–22.0 mm rather than 22.0–25.0 mm; having (2) a dark face with prominent double pale (probably yellow or blue in life) spots on the labrum and pale genae extending as narrow wedges along the eyes; (3) a dark thorax with the pale ante-humeral stripes obscured with age, leaving only two yellowish bands on the sides; and (4) a quite extensively black dorsum of S 2 contrasting with the almost unmarked remaining abdomen ( Fig. 2).

Material studied

Holotype ♂. Labels »COLL. MUS. CONGO, Ubangi : Ebuku , IX-1935, A.Bal «, » Chlorocypha luminosa (Karsch) 1959 det. F.C. Fraser «, MRAC . No specimen photograph available.

Further material. 1 ♂, as holotype, MRAC . 2 ♂ with labels »COLL. MUS. CONGO, Bomboma (Terr. Giri) - IV-1935, A. Bal «, » Chlorocypha selysi (Karsch) 1959 det. F.C. Fraser «, MRAC .

Genetics

No data available.

Male morphological diagnosis

Recalls the western African C. dispar (Palisot de Beauvois, 1807) and potentially sympatric C. pyriformosa by (a) the small size, Hw 19.5 –21.0 mm (n = 4); (b) the extensively black head, including the all black labrum, and thorax, both with quite limited and inconspicuous brown markings; (c) the anteriorly white-streaked mid and hind tibiae, but black fore tibiae; (d) the red abdominal dorsum; and (e) the black markings on S 2 enclosing a central red marking ( Fig. 2). However, (1) the middorsal carina of the thorax is dark as in C. dispar , not contrastingly pale as in C. pyriformosa ; (2) the anterior faces of the mid and hind tibiae are entirely white as in C. pyriformosa , while the mid is only half white in C. dispar ; and (3) S 2–3 are red rather than extensively black laterally, S 2 is marked with an oval spot dissected by a black line over the dorsal carina recalling a coffee bean, S 3–5 have paired thick black spots fused to apices, and S 6–7 paired subapical dark hyphens ( Fig. 2).

Etymology

Latin “having a grain” refers to the kernel-shaped marking on S 2, but indirectly also to the species’ red colour as in the words pomegranate and garnet (feminine adjective).

Range and ecology

Only known from the type material collected 80 years ago in the Kungu area at around 385 m a.s.l. in north-western Congo-Kinshasa. Possibly inhabits swamp forest.