Neoperla erinaceus, Zwick & Zwick, 2023

Zwick, Peter & Zwick, Andreas, 2023, Revision of the African Neoperla Needham, 1905 (Plecoptera: Perlidae: Perlinae) based on morphological and molecular data, Zootaxa 5316 (1), pp. 1-194 : 56

22. Neoperla erinaceus n. sp.

( Figs. 102–107 )

Type material studied. Republic of Cameroon, J holotype ( NEOP120 ), 6°8’26.25’’N, 10°6’3-68’’ E, NW Reg., Bamenda, Mentchum River contributor 15 km NNW Bafut, 630m asl, 9 Nov.2011, MV-lamp ( SMNS; penis slide, tip of abdomen in ETOH). J paratype ( NEOP122 ) , same data, only penis slide left. 1J paratype ( NEOP121 ): 4°51’42.89’’N, 9°38’21.17’’ E, Republic of Cameroon , SW Region, Tumbel, Ngusi, Etambo River, 490m asl, 23.Oct.2011, MV-lamp ( SMNS; fragments: fore body, part of antenna, 1 leg, penis slide)

Habitus. WL 12.2–13.1mm. Body light ochre. Occiput and head to the inside of the eyes pale, frontoclypeus light brown. The wide dark brown ocellar mark is connected to a brown arch along the occipital suture and continuing to the slightly paler tentorial callus. M-line also pale. Pronotum of a dusty light brown, raised parts of pterothorax between wing bases brownish. Wings light ochre, turbid. Veins brown, only costa and crossveins in costal space pale.

Male ( Figs. 102–107 ). T7 with a transverse brown band which is in the middle connected to the antecosta. Behind it is a narrow pale band in front of an equilateral triangular sclerite with pyramid-shaped tip, its lower face with a bulging ridge and many SB ( Fig. 102 ). The sclerite on T8 is of similar shape and size, from its center rises a low hump ( Figs. 102, 103 ) with some SB. The antecosta T8 is not modified, there is no hinge with T7. Antecosta 9 widely interrupted in front of a membranous field. Caudally lateral pilose humps bear many SB, the wide median furrow with a triangular sclerite. HT10 slender, curved outward, the mediobasal callus is large and rounded. Epiproct a small triangular plate. A transverse sclerite is located between the epiproct and the anteromedial point of the basal cercus segment.

Penis ( Figs. 104–107 ) a wide tube, the endophallus is of similar length, with many minute dorso-apical teeth at the base ( Fig.104 ). The endophallus is carrot-shaped, all sides are covered by erect quite large hooks growing distally successively smaller ( Figs. 106–107 ).

Female. Unknown.

DNA ( Figs. 492 , 495 ). The male holotype and the two male paratypes from Cameroon were sequenced for the COX1 DNA barcode fragment, grouping them together with very strong support (99.8/100/100). The species is very strongly supported (85.2/100/100) as sister to the N. panafricana n. sp. / N. camerunensis (Enderlein) species complex.

Etymology. The spreading spines on all sides of the endophallus reminded us of a hedgehog, genus Erinaceus Linnaeus, 1758 . The name is a noun in apposition.

Figures

FIGURE 492. Simplified overview of codon-model maximum likelihood phylogram based on 356 mitochondrial genome and COX1 DNA barcode sequences (all-NT). Terminal labels include information on the species only. Clades of particular interest highlighted with colours that correspond to the clades in other trees. The full tree is shown in Figs 493-498.

FIGURE 495. Partial (clade E) codon-model maximum likelihood phylogram based on 356 mitochondrial genome and COX1 DNA barcode sequences (all-NT). See Fig. 493 for common details.

FIGURES 102–107. Neoperla erinaceus n. sp., ♁ holotype: 102, 103, tergites 7–10, not to scale; 104, penis with everted endophallus, a white arrow indicates the location of the detail in Fig. 105; 106, 107, endophalli of the paratypes. Scale lines are 100µm, penes to same scale. cb, convergent bands of teeth; dat, dorso-apical teeth; ep, epiproct; is, isolated sclerite. Lines connect corresponding areas on the endophalli.