Mesopodagrionidae, Kalkman & Abbott, 2021

Orr, Albert G. W., 2024, A review of present knowledge of larvae of the Calopterygoidea (Zygoptera) of the Oriental realm, including keys to families and known genera, Zootaxa 5497 (2), pp. 209-243 : 236

Family Mesopodagrionidae

The family has just one genus including two species, with the larva of Mesopodagrion tibetanum McLachlan having been described ( Yu 2016). They inhabit mountain streams from 500–2700m in southern China, and northern Myanmar and Thailand. They bear unique lateral tufted projections arising from the postocular lobes ( Fig. 12 ) and the prementum is shout and broad, with convex lateral margins only slightly expanded anteriorly and with a shallow but distinct anterior median lobe with short median cleft ( Fig. 13 ). As in Argiolestidae , the caudal gills are foliate and arranged in a horizontal fan ( Fig. 12 ) but there are numerous points of difference between Mesopodagrion and Podolestes ( Figs 14, 15 ), the only argiolestid genus known from mainland Asia.

Figures

FIGURES 12–17. 12. Mesopodagrion tibetanum, habitus with detail of right profile of head (based on Yu 2016). 13. M. tibetanum, detail of mask (redrawn from Yu 2016). 14. Podolestes orientalis, habitus (from Choong & Orr 2010). 15. Podolestes orientalis, detail of mask (from Choong & Orr 2010). 16. Rhipidolestes aculeatus, habitus and detail of lateral and median gill (modified from Asahina 1994). 17. Rhipidolestes aculeatus, detail of mask (modified from Ishida 1996).