Epipleoneura venezuelensis Rácenis, 1955

Pessacq, Pablo, 2014, Synopsis of Epipleoneura (Zygoptera, Coenagrionidae, “ Protoneuridae ”), with emphasis on its Brazilian species, Zootaxa 3872 (3), pp. 201-234 : 230-231

Epipleoneura venezuelensis Rácenis, 1955

( Figs. 12 , 31 , 69)

Epipleoneura venezuelensis Rácenis, 1955: 59 –61, figs. 4a–b (new species, description of male, illustration of male S 10 in lateral and posterior view, type material at MIZA). Santos 1957: 187 –190, figs. 1–11 (description of female, redescription of male, illustration of male S 10 in lateral, dorsal, ventral and posterior view, male and female prothorax in dorsal and lateral view, genital ligula in ectal and lateral view, female S8–10). Rácenis 1960: 25 –26 (included in list of species, recorded for Brazil and Venezuela). Lencioni 2005: 183 (references, type locality, distribution, described stages). Garrison et al. 2010: 352, 355, fig. 2355 (included in list of species, illustrations of epiproct in posterior view). Pessacq et al. 2012: 5 (included in list of Brazilian Protoneuridae , new record for Brasilia, Goiás, Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso, Pará, Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, and Espiritu Santo States).

Specimens examined. 64♂, 19♀. 16♂, 6♀, Brazil, Paraná State, Paraná river, das sete quedas National Park (about 25º24’45”S, 54º35’39”W), leg. N.D. Santos, J.M. Costa & L.F. Reys, 24–25 ii 1979. 21 ♂ 2 ♀, Brazil, Rio de Janeiro State, rio Piraí, Claro river on Duilio point (about 22º37’44”S, 43º53’52”W), leg. N.D. Santos, 15 iii 1978. 15 ♂ 10 ♀, same data as previous but channel of Sao Juan river, Sao Vicente, CEDAE (about 22º39’03”S, 42º23’31”W), leg. N.D. Santos & H. Mesquita, 7 viii 1980. 5 ♂ 1 ♀, Brazil, Goiás State, Itumbiara (18º25’12”S, 49º13’04”W), leg. N.D. Santos, L.F. Netto & H. Mesquita, 18 ii 1981. 3 ♂, Brazil, Mato Grosso State, Chapada dos Guimarães (about 15º27’39”S, 55º45’00”W), Casca river, leg. L.F. Reys, 17 vii 1983. 1 ♂, Venezuela, Morichal largo, Monagas, (9º16’23”N, 62º79’96”W), leg. J. De Marmels, 3 vii 2001. 6 ♂, Argentina, Entre Rios State, La Azotea stream, 20 km NW from Parque Nacional Predelta (32º07’57”S, 60º40’32”W), leg. A. Garre, F. Lozano, J. Lambruschini, L. Ramos & S. Weigel, 25 xi 2006. 1 ♂, Bolivia, Beni State, Parque Nacional Isiboro Secure, nameless stream tributary of Pluma river (16º02’54”S, 66º715’37”W), leg. P. Pessacq, 29 xi 2011.

Diagnosis. Male cercus resembles that described under E. capilliformis . The cercus possesses a welldeveloped inner-basal branch, with its apex directed posteriorly, reaching or not midline of S10 medially. The unique epiproct ( Fig. 12 b–c) of E. venezuelensis separates it from all other described species; it has two short, rounded apical lobes and two lateral lobes directed ventrally on each side at an angle of 45º with body of epiproct. The genital ligula ( Fig. 31 ) is similar to that of E. capilliformis and related species, but the apex of segment 3 has a wide V cleft and the lateral corners are triangular and directed laterally, not as acute and directed anteriorly as in E. capilliformis . Female posterior margin of pronotum in E. venezuelensis ( Fig. 59 ) has a wide medial projection and anterior margin with a wide deep concavity; for further comments see under E. fernandezi .

Distribution. Northern Venezuela (type locality: Espino, Guárico, Venezuela, about 8º33’40”N, 66º01’35”W), central Brazil in the States of Espiritu Santo, Goiás, Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso, Paraná, Río de Janeiro, Rondônia, and São Paulo, Northern Bolivia at Beni State, and northern Argentina in Corrientes State.

Notes. In the MNRJ collection I studied specimens of a probable new species, close to E. venezuelensis , but with the lateral lobes of epiproct directed outwards, at an angle of 90º with epiproct and with the cercus inner-basal branch directed meso-ventrally. F.A.A. Lencioni (pers. comm.) has both species in his personal collection; in order to positively identify E. venezuelensis , he borrowed material from MIZA ( Venezuela), but unfortunately, that material also represented the probable new species, and thus, Lencioni’s (2005) illustrations of cercus and epiproct belong to this probable new species and not the true E. venezuelensis , and he would be describing this new species (Lencioni, pers. comm.).

Some variation of epiproct morphology was observed in the material studied, mainly in the shape of the apex of branches and the cleft between them ( Figures 12 and 69).

R.W. Garrison (pers. comm.) has studied several males and a few females close to E. venezuelensis , and according to him, the females seem to show clear morphological differences that imply different specific identity, but the epiproct and cercus of males are very similar. This may indicate that E. venezuelensis comprises a complex of sibling species. Unfortunately, during my stay in the MNRJ, I focused on male morphology, and did not address morphological differences between females of this species. Until new information is forthcoming, I consider all morphological variation here described as E. venezuelensis .

The record of E. venezuelensis from the Parque Nacional Isiboro Secure, Bolivia, is new for the country.

Figures

FIGURES 10 – 12. Male caudal appendages, a: lateral view; b: posterior view, c: latero-posterior view. Figure 10 modified from Machado (1985).

FIGURES 28 – 47. Genital ligula, lateral and ectal view. Figures 29, 33, 47 modified from Garrison et al. (2010). PLP: posterolateral projection.

FIGURES 53 – 66. Female pronotum in lateral, dorsal, antero-lateral, anterior postero-lateral and posterior view. Figures 57, 64 and 65 modified from Garrison et al. (2010), Rácenis (1960) and Machado (2005) respectively.