Coenagrion pulchellum (Vander Linden, 1825)

Kosterin, Oleg E., Onishko, Vladimir V., Ilyina, Elena V., Chepurnov, Grigory Yu. & Blinov, Alexander G., 2024, The genus Coenagrion Kirby, 1890 (Odonata: Coenagrionidae) in the Russian part of the Caucasus, Zootaxa 5471 (2), pp. 151-190 : 170-171

publication ID

https://doi.org/ 10.11646/zootaxa.5471.2.1

publication LSID

lsid:zoobank.org:pub:BAA047F4-2D65-4E52-8798-D426E3B26DA1

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.12190721

persistent identifier

https://treatment.plazi.org/id/DB0F87E1-9102-F10A-A7D3-F8F47E277CEF

treatment provided by

Plazi

scientific name

Coenagrion pulchellum (Vander Linden, 1825)
status

 

3. Coenagrion pulchellum (Vander Linden, 1825) View in CoL

Figs 2o–p View FIGURE 2 , 3o–p View FIGURE3 , 4e–f View FIGURE 4 , 5b–c View FIGURE 5 , 7j View FIGURE 7 , 8e–m View FIGURE 8

Reported from: throughout Krasnodarskiy Kray, Adygea and Kabardino-Balkaria; scarce unprecise reports from Stavropol’skiy Kray, Karachay-Cherkressia and North Ossetia; not reported from Chechnya and Dagestan, as summarised by Skvortsov (2010; for Adygea see also Shapovalov & Korotkov 2019). Kamysh-Burun, for which the species was reported in the paper on dragonflies of Dagestan by Artobolevskij (1929), was in Dagestan in Artobolevskij’s time but presently is a part of Neftekumsk Town in Stavropol’skiy Kray.

Specimens. Krasnodarskiy Kray: ♀ (dark morph), Anapa Municipality, the Dzhiga River lowermost reaches and mouth 1 km W of Suvorov-Cherkesskiy settlement, 45.060 –45.064 N, 37.261– 37.262 E, 0–1 m a.s.l. 24.06.2019 GoogleMaps . Karachay-Cherkes Republic : ♀, Zelenchuk District, Dausuz village W environs, S banks of a large water reserve at the Bolzhoy Zelenchuk River , 43.793 –43.796 N, 41.536– 41.540 E, 1012–1014 m a.s.l., 3.07.2019 GoogleMaps . Republic of Dagestan: ♂ (176989333, 181375745 ( Fig. 8m View FIGURE 8 )—both refer to the only male specimen collected), Kumtorkala District, the Shura-Ozen’ River at Kumtorkala Station , next to Sarykum Barkhan , 42.997 –43.006 N, 47.223– 47.246 E, 65–80 m a.s.l., 30.05.2023 GoogleMaps ; ♂ ( Figs 4f View FIGURE 4 , 5b View FIGURE 5 ), ♀ ( Fig. 7k View FIGURE 7 ), Makhachkala N env., Muraveynik Protected Area at the Sulak River mouth, pools among coastal dunes, 43.204 –43.211 N, 47.491– 47.497 E, 26 m below s.l., 1.06.2021, E. Ilyina leg. GoogleMaps ; ♀, the same place, 8.06.2021, E. Ilyina leg.; 4 ♂♂ ( Figs 2o View FIGURE 2 , 3o View FIGURE3 , 4e View FIGURE 4 , 5c View FIGURE 5 ), 8 ♀♀ (166632124, 166725873, 166726404, 166726653 ( Fig. 8k View FIGURE 8 ), 166727248, 166727929, 166728450 ( Fig. 8f View FIGURE 8 ), 166728814, 166728940, 166733552, 166733553 ( Fig.8l View FIGURE 8 ), 166733810, 166734141, 166734669 ( Fig. 8g View FIGURE 8 ), 166734952, 166735309, 166735310, 166737122, 166832245, 166835373, 167024132, 167024135), Makhachkala N suburbs, pools between dunes at the Krivaya Balka River left bank in its lowermost reaches, 43.199 –43.200 N, 47.486– 47.490 E, 26 m below s.l., 23.05.2023, O. Kosterin & E. Ilyina leg. GoogleMaps ; ♂, ♀ (176988555, 176988662, 176988774, 176988928, 176989100, 176989203, 178699404 ( Fig. 8e View FIGURE 8 ), 178699406 ( Fig. 8j View FIGURE 8 ), 178699407 ( Fig. 8h View FIGURE 8 ), 178699412, 181376006, 181376072, 181381216, 181381373), the same place but a broader longitude range of 47.486 – 47.493 E,, 30.05.2023.

Additional photographic registrations. Krasnodarskiy Kray: ♀ (dark morph) (37520705), Anapa Municipality, Sukko village E end, the Sukko River, 44.800 N, 37.439 E, 1.06.2018 GoogleMaps . Kabardino-Balkarian Republic: ♂ (37681836), Mayskiy Town NE margin, an inundated quarry, 43.654 N, 44.100 E, 1.05.2019 GoogleMaps .

Characters. Male cercus large: trunk very robust, in lateral view ( Fig. 3o–q View FIGURE3 ) with horizontal to subhorizontal upper surface and apex processed and terminated as an acute angle, but with a rounded tip; in dorsal view ( Fig. 2o–q View FIGURE 2 ) rounded with a very large bulge as a blunt rounded angle, with bulges of the opposite cerci contacting each other. Tubercle disposed right below trunk apex, well seen in lateral view ( Fig. 3o–q View FIGURE3 ) and protruding behind to the level of paraproct spine. Tooth disposed at ca 2/3 of trunk length ( Fig. 2o–q View FIGURE 2 ) (while almost at middle in C. persicum , see Fig. 2n View FIGURE 2 ). Process long and straight, seen only in caudal view ( Fig. 4e–f View FIGURE 4 ), very narrowly triangular with a blunt apex; terminating at paraproct prominence level.

Paparoct spine very thin, directed a bit more than 45° upwards, prominence long, protruding caudad not much less than spine, incision between them very deep and broad ( Fig. 3o–q View FIGURE3 ), broader than in C. persicum , in which the prominence is directed caudad ( Fig. 3n View FIGURE3 ) rather than ventrocaudad as in C. pulchellum (Fig. 30o–q); the same difference is shown in Schneider et al. (2016: fig. 2).

Male pronotum hind margin tripartite, with the three lobes separated by two deep depressions ( Fig. 5b–c View FIGURE 5 ).

Female pronotum festoon-like, with three sharp lobes, a rounded triangular central and two broadly rounded lateral ones, separated by deep narrow skewed triangular depressions ( Fig. 7j View FIGURE 7 ), the latter not as sinuous as in C. persicum ( Fig. 7i View FIGURE 7 , see also Schneider et al. 2016).

The Caucasian males of C. pulchellum represent more melanic versions of the maculation pattern of this very variable species ( Fig. 8j–m View FIGURE 8 ), like specimens from West Siberia which were once described as C. pulchellum sibiricum Belyshev, 1964 ( Belyshev 1964). In males, the antehumeral blue stripe is entire ( Fig. 8j–k View FIGURE 8 ) or, more frequently, interrupted ( Fig. 8l View FIGURE 8 ). In the most melanic specimen from the Shura-Ozen’ River it is reduced to tiny blue dots in the fore synthorax part ( Fig. 8m View FIGURE 8 ). Male S9 with a posterior variable black bar, entire ( Fig. 8l–m View FIGURE 8 ) or more or less bipartite ( Fig. 8k View FIGURE 8 ); S10 dorsally mostly black.

Female dimorphic for the dark ( Fig. 8f View FIGURE 8 ) and spotty ( Fig. 8e–h, g View FIGURE 8 ) morphs as elsewhere in Europe ( Dijkstra et al. 2020) but in both morphs, S8 is always blue ( Fig. 8h View FIGURE 8 ) or largely blue ( Fig. 8e, f–g View FIGURE 8 ), with some bipartite ( Fig. 8e–g View FIGURE 8 ) or paired black ( Fig. 8f View FIGURE 8 ) mark(s) at most. We never met females with completely dark S8 dorsum, as depicted for both female morphs of this species by Dijkstra et al. (2020).

Distribution and habitat. The species is seemingly widespread but rare in the Caucasus at low elevations, always found by solitary individuals with a notable exception of huge populations existing at pools between coastal sandy dunes in the northern environs of Makhachkala, the capital of Dagestan. In the latter locality, the only congener, C. scitulum was also found as solitary individuals. Maybe more large coastal populations of C. pulchellum exist elsewhere, as the Azov and Caspian coasts of the Caucasus remain poorly explored.

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Arthropoda

Class

Insecta

Order

Odonata

Family

Coenagrionidae

Genus

Coenagrion

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