Elattoneura aurifex Dijkstra & Mézière, 2015

Dijkstra, Klaas-Douwe B., Kipping, Jens & Mézière, Nicolas, 2015, Sixty new dragonfly and damselfly species from Africa (Odonata), Odonatologica 44 (4), pp. 447-678 : 485-489

Elattoneura aurifex Dijkstra & Mézière sp. nov. – Goldsmith Threadtail (Type Photo 8, Photos 14 –15, 26, 52, 62, Fig. 5)

Taxonomy

Morphologically and genetically nearest to the unresolved vrijdaghi -complex of Elattoneura Cowley, 1935 , but clearly distinct on both accounts. Legrand (1980) synonymised E. tsiamae Aguesse, 1966 with E. vrijdaghi Fraser, 1954 but Dijkstra & Clausnitzer (2014) treated them separately on account of specimens attributable to two species found in sympatry in central Congo- Kinshasa and south-eastern Gabon. However, these regional forms also differ from each other while the holotype of E. vrijdaghi in MRAC has paraprocts and ante-humerals more like as illustrated for E. tsiamae by Dijkstra & Clausnitzer (2014) and thus further study of the complex is needed ( Fig. 5).

Material studied

Holotype ♂. RMNH.INS.502487 , Gabon, Haut-Ogooué Province, 34 km E of Franceville, Franceville-Léconi Road, NE of Bongoville , small streams and swamp at forest edge, 417 m a.s.l. (1.6131 ° S 13.9056 ° E), 31 -xii- 2009, leg. K.- D.B. Dijkstra, RMNH .

Further material. GABON (Haut-Ogooué Province): 1 ♀, 5 km after Bongoville towards Léconi, Andzaba River, Ekala , sandy and swampy stream, 389 m a.s.l. (1.6319 ° S 13.8888 ° E), 28 -iii- 2010, leg. N. Mézière & J. Renoult, RMNH . 1 ♂, 31 -viii-2010 , 1♂, 26 -xi-2011 , 1♂ ( RMNH.INS.508775 ), 09- iii- 2013, all same locality, all leg. N. Mézière, RMNH . 2 ♂ ♀, 34 km E of Franceville, Franceville-Léconi Road, NE of Bongoville , small streams and swamp at forest edge, 417 m a.s.l. (1.6131 ° S 13.9056 ° E), 31 -xii- 2009, leg. K.- D.B. Dijkstra, RMNH . 1 ♂, Bongoville-Léconi road, Boubou River, Ekala , swamp close to the river, 421 m a.s.l. (1.6116 ° S 13.9116 ° E), 19 -xi- 2011, leg. N. Mézière, RMNH . 2 ♂ ( RMNH.INS.502422 , RMNH.INS.502425 ), Bongoville-Léconi road after Ekala, old village of Boubou , stream (2 m wide) with gravel bottom, 393 m a.s.l. (1.6114 ° S 13.9105 ° E), 20 -ix- 2009, leg. N. Mézière, RMNH . 3 ♂, 30 -xii-2010 , 1♂, 05-ii-2010 , 1♂, 28 -xii- 2010, all same locality, all leg. N. Mézière, RMNH . 2 ♂ 1 ♂ ♀, Léconi road, Souba , little sandy stream in gallery forest (2 m wide, 30 cm deep) and another bigger stream (3 m, 1 m), 413 m a.s.l. (1.5689 ° S 14.0382 ° E), 28 -i- 2012, leg. N. Mézière, A. Günther, J. Kipping & H. Krahnstöver, RMNH . 1 ♂, 50 km N of Franceville, Franceville-Okondja Road, Léconi River at bridge N of Onvouri-Olounga, large sandy river, 307 m a.s.l. (1.1776 ° S 13.5389 ° E), 10 - i- 2010, leg. K.- D.B. Dijkstra, N. Mézière & C. Vanappelghem, RMNH . 1 ♂ ( RMNH.INS.508088 ), Batéké Plateau, small sandy stream near Souba Lake , 413 m a.s.l. (1.5688 ° S 14.0388 ° E), 27 -i- 2011, leg. N. Mézière, CJKL . 2 ♂ 1 ♀, same locality, same dates, CJKL . 1 ♂ ♀, Batéké Plateau, 18 km NW of Léconi, sandy stream in dense gallery forest, tributary to Léconi River , 425 m a.s.l. (1.4472 ° S 14.1661 ° E), 30 -ix- 2013, leg. J. Kipping, CJKL .

Genetics Five unique haplotypes (n = 5) are very distinct but nearest to the vrijdaghi - complex. Male morphological diagnosis

Fairly small damselfly (Hw 20.0– 21.5 mm; n = 8) that is nearest to E. tsiamae / vrijdaghi by (a) the entirely brightly coloured labrum, clypeus and antefrons, as well as a broad band across the black dorsum of the head between the antennae and lateral ocelli; (b) the mesepisterna with little black; (c) the dull pale legs with blotchy dark markings, rather than uniformly red or black legs; (d) the double pair of finger-like lobes placed closely to each other at the penis apex; and (e) the triangular ventral process of the cerci, with its anterior border at an acute angle to the posterior border ( Fig. 5). However, (1) the colour on the head and mesepisterna is warm yellow, rather than dark ochre yellow to reddish; (2) the eyes in life are brown rather than red; (3) the pronotal dorsum and mesepisterna are almost wholly yellow, contrasting with the largely black sides of the pronotum, mesokatepisterna and mesepimera; (4) the metapleural suture typically has a broad black stripe along its entire length; (5) only the dorsa of the cerci and S 9–10 are yellowish, contrasting with the largely black abdomen, rather than most of these segments and the appendages rufous; (6) the ventral process of the cerci is less drawn out; and (7) the apical process of the paraprocts is more slender and rounded ( Fig. 5).

Etymology

Latin “goldsmith” refers to the yellow coloration (noun in apposition).

Range and ecology

Shady spots along clear sandy streams in gallery forests between 300 and 425 m a.s.l. on the Batéké Plateau in south-eastern Gabon ( Photos 15, 26, 52, 62). CUMZ has specimens from Djoumouna, a river at 375 m a.s.l. 20km southwest of Brazzaville in Congo-Brazzaville, and the species is likely to occur widely across the sandy soils of this region.