Journal of Threatened Taxa |
www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 April 2021 | 13(5): 18200–18214
ISSN 0974-7907 (Online) | ISSN 0974-7893
(Print)
https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.6579.13.5.18200-18214
#6579 | Received 17 August 2020 | Final
received 21 February 2021 | Finally accepted 05 April 2021
Two new species of Euphaea Selys, 1840
(Odonata: Zygoptera: Euphaeidae)
from northern Western Ghats, India
Shriram Dinkar Bhakare 1 , Vinayan P Nair 2 , Pratima Ashok Pawar 3 , Sunil Hanmant
Bhoite 4 & Kalesh
Sadasivan5
1 354, Somwar Peth, Near New English School, Satara,
Maharashtra 415002, India.
2 TORG (TNHS Odonate Research Group), Travancore Nature History Society
(TNHS), MBRRA, Mathrubhumi Road, Vanchiyoor,
Trivandrum, Kerala 695035, India.
3 Department of
Zoology, Dada Patil Mahavidyalay Karjat, District
Ahmednagar, Maharashtra 414402, India.
4 Drongo Nature conservation, Protection
and Research Organisation, 280, Ramacha Got, Satara, Maharashtra
415002, India.
5 TORG (TNHS Odonate Research Group), Travancore Nature History Society
(TNHS), MBRRA, Mathrubhumi Road, Vanchiyoor,
Trivandrum, Kerala 695035, India.
1 milind1plus@gmail.com,
2 vinayanpnair@gmail.com, 3 pratimap79@gmail.com,
4 bhoitesunil@rediffmail.com,
5
kaleshs2002in@gmail.com (corresponding author)
ZooBank: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:F52582C1-2AF1-4611-96C2-EC6B66B30BA0
Editor: Anonymity requested. Date of publication: 26 April 2021 (online & print)
Citation: Bhakare, S.D., V.P. Nair,
P.A. Pawar, S.H. Bhoite
& K. Sadasivan (2021). Two new species of Euphaea Selys, 1840
(Odonata: Zygoptera: Euphaeidae)
from northern Western Ghats, India. Journal of Threatened Taxa 13(5): 18200–18214. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.6579.13.5.18200-18214
Copyright: © Bhakare et al. 2021. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
International License. JoTT allows unrestricted use, reproduction, and
distribution of this article in any medium by providing adequate credit to the
author(s) and the source of publication.
Funding: None.
Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.
Author
details: Shriram Dinkar Bhakare: An
eye surgeon by profession and a nature lover from Western Maharashtra. A
butterfly enthusiast with special interest in study and documentation of early
stages of butterflies of Western Ghats. Author of the book ‘A guide to the
butterflies of Western Ghats.
Vinayan P Nair: Zoology teacher at
Government Vocational Higher Secondary School, Payyoli,
Kozhikode and Research Associate at Travancore Nature History Society (TNHS),
Trivandrum, Kerala. Currently involved in studying taxonomy of odonates of Western Ghats. Apart from odonates
he has specific interests in moths, butterflies, ants, mantids and wasps. Pratima
Ashok Pawar Assistant Professor at Rayat Shikshan Sanstha’s Dada Patil Mahavidyalay Karjat, Ahmednagar, working on butterflies for past few
years with about a dozen national and international publications. Sunil Hanmant Bhoite: A
freelance researcher in the area of biodiversity. Naturalist and founder
president of Satara based NGO called ‘DRONGO’ working
for nature conservation and environmental protection. Reported a new species of
fish and a plant. Authored 5 Books, has 15 national and international
publications. Working as a Honorary Wildlife Warden of Satara
for the last 13 years. Kalesh Sadasivan: A
Plastic Surgeon by profession and a naturalist by passion, from Kerala. Founder
member and research associate of Travancore Nature History Society (TNHS), an
NGO based in Trivandrum since 2010. A wildlife photographer and an amateur
taxonomist with specific interest in invertebrates. Discovered and described
more than a dozen new species to science from the Western Ghats including
butterflies, frogs, reptiles, wasps, ants & odonates.
Author
contribution: Shriram Dinkar
Bhakare: Field work and came across the species
for the first time, photo documented, collected the species and edited the
manuscript. Vinayan P Nair: Editing of
manuscript and taxonomic placement. Pratima Ashok Pawar: Field
work for the species and edited the manuscript. Sunil Hanmant
Bhoite: Field work, photo documented, collected
the species and edited the manuscript. Kalesh Sadasivan: Taxonomic description and placement,
identified additional taxonomic features for the genus, wrote the manuscript
and keys, edited the final manuscript.
Acknowledgements: We are thankful to Abraham Samuel, Manoj Sethumadavan, and Jeevith S. for
field images. We thank M. Jafer Palot,
K.A. Subramanian, and Noppadon Makbun
for their support and members of TNHS, Thiruvananthapuram, for field
assistance.
Abstract: Two new species of
the damselfly genus Euphaea Selys, 1840 (Odonata: Euphaeidae)
are described from the Western Ghats of Satara
District, Maharashtra, distinguished by their distinct morphology and
coloration. E. thosegharensis Sadasivan & Bhakare sp. nov. is similar to E. cardinalis (Fraser,
1924), but is distinguished by the extensor and flexor surface of all femora
black while all femora bright red in E. cardinalis; apical fourth of Hw black while apical half of Hw
black in E. cardinalis; genae reddish-orange,
black in E. cardinalis; a tuft of sparse stub black hair on either side
of tergite of S9 while both S8 and S9 with tufts of long ventral hairs in E.
cardinalis. Male genital vesicle
matt black, with distal border rounded angles, while vesicle black and
hexagonal in shape with rounded angles in E. cardinalis and S9 twice the
length of S10, while S9 and S10 of equal length in E. cardinalis. E. pseudodispar Sadasivan & Bhakare sp. nov., is very
close to E. dispar (Rambur, 1842), but is
differentiated easily by the absence of yellow patch on legs as in E. dispar; only apical fifth of Hw
black; genae being yellowish-white, while black in E.
dispar; male genital vesicle brownish-black &
rhomboid-shaped and with no transverse rugosities while black with distal
border rounded and with fine transverse rugosities in E. dispar;
penis with single seta on each side while E. dispar
has three pairs; sternite of S9 very prominently
extending ventrally like a beak in comparison with E. dispar. We have identified additional morphological
characters useful in taxonomy of Euphaea of
the Western Ghats for example, tufts of ventral hairs on terminal abdominal
segments genital vesicle, penile structure of males and sternite
of S9 in the males, and vulvar scales of females. A taxonomic key to all known species of genus
Euphaea of the Western Ghats is also provided.
Keywords: Additional
morphological characters, Damsel fly, Endemic, Maharashtra, taxonomic key.
Abbreviations: Ax—antenodal crossveins | Fw—forewing | Hw—hindwing | Px—postnodal crossveins
| Pt—pterostigma | S1–10—abdominal segments | TL—total length of the specimen
including appendages | AL—abdominal length | FL—forewing length | HL—hindwing
length | TNHS—Travancore Nature History Society | TORG—Travancore Odonate Research Group | KS—Kalesh
Sadasivan | SDB—Sunil Hanmant
Bhoite | SHB—Shriram Dinkar
Bhakare | PAP—Pratima Ashok Pawar.
Introduction
The genus Euphaea Selys, 1840
(Odonata: Euphaeidae) is represented by medium-sized
damselflies distributed from the Western Ghats of peninsular India,
northeastern India, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, and Malaya in Indochina &
Borneo. India has five known species of Euphaea (Subramanian & Babu 2017); two species, Euphaea
masoni Selys, 1879 and Euphaea ochracea Selys, 1859, are distributed in the northeastern region,
while the Western Ghats has three species namely Euphaea
cardinalis (Fraser, 1924), E. dispar
(Rambur, 1842), and E. fraseri (Laidlaw, 1920)
(Subramanian et al. 2018). They are
characterized by males with hindwing apices more or less broadly opaque black
having metallic iridescence in some light; forewings pointed, hindwing rounded
and shorter than the forewing; discoidal cell traversed; thorax robust; abdomen
long cylindrical in males and same length or shorter in females; abdominal
segment 10 with a robust dorsal keel and its apex pointed, and the anal
appendages with forcipate cerci and tiny paraprocts
(Fraser 1934).
The species E.
cardinalis is endemic to the Western Ghats and is distributed in Kerala and
Tamil Nadu. It is a montane species seen
above 900m south of the Palghat gap in the Anamalai,
Palani, and Agasthyamalai hills. E. dispar is
confined to the Western Ghats north of the Palghat gap from South Kanara and
Coorg to the Nilgiris (Malabar Wayanad) from 1,066 to
1,828 m (Fraser 1934). E. fraseri is a species seen in the forested foothills of
the Western Ghats and is distributed from North and South Kanara, Malabar,
Coorg, the Nilgiris Wayanad, and Anamalai
Hills (Fraser, 1934), and its current distribution is from Kanyakumari to
Maharashtra at 100–1,200 m (Subramanian et al. 2018). Here, we describe two new species of the
genus from Satara District, Maharashtra the northern
Western Ghats, north of the Amboli Ghat.
Materials and Methods
SDB came across the
specimens in May 2020 at Thoseghar, Satara District of Maharashtra (Image 1). The insects were collected and preserved in
absolute alcohol and compared to specimens of known species of Euphaea from the Western Ghats. Nomenclature follow Subramanian & Babu (2017) and Paulson & Schorr (2020). The known distribution of the species follows
Subramanian et al. (2018). Taxonomic
keys to the species are modified based on Fraser (1934). The morphological description follows
Garrison et al. (2006). The ventro-lateral wing like structure on segment 2 is termed
the pseudoauricle following Orr (2003). The scale like structure guarding the
gonopore on ventrum of abdominal segment 9 (S9) is
referred here to as the gonocoxae. The wing venation terminology follows Riek & Kukalová-Peck
(1984). Measurements and morphological
details of all species mentioned in text are based on specimens in voucher
collections of TORG. Photographs of the
specimens were taken with Canon (Canon Inc., Japan) EOS 70D DSLR fitted with 180mm
macro lens.
Current distribution
of known species of Euphaea is based on our
personal records and Subramanian et al. (2018).
The genitalia were studied by dissecting under a stereo-zoom microscope
(HEADZ Model HD81) and later preserved in glycerol. Holotype and paratype are deposited in the
insect collection facility of Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), Kozhikode. Additional material will be deposited in ZSI
Pune and Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), Mumbai. Illustrations were made by KS using the
stereo-zoom microscope.
Results
Euphaea thosegharensis
Sadasivan & Bhakare, sp. nov.
(Image 2 A–G)
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:73CD578F-55F4-4C99-8110-27CA5120B65B
Holotype:
ZSI/WGRC/I.R-INV.15031, 30.v.2020, Male, wet specimen in alcohol, Thoseghar, Satara District,
Maharashtra, India, 1,060m; specimen collected from a paddy field near a
flowing stream, coll. SDB.
Paratype:
ZSI/WGRC/I.R-INV.15032, 30.v.2020, Female, same information as the Holotype.
Additional material
examined: Males (n= 4) and females (n= 3) bear the same
collection data as the holotype, wet specimens in alcohol, will be subsequently
deposited in collections of ZSI Pune and BNHS Mumbai.
Additional field
records (specimens not collected): Thoseghar (1,060m): 10 males
and 4 females on 30.v.20; 14 males and 6 females on 07.vi.20; 7 males and 3
females on 14.vi.20; 8 males and 4 females on 21.vi.20; 8 males and 5 females
on 28.vi.20; 8 males and 2 females on 02.vii.20; 2 males and 2 females on
04.viii.20. All observations by SHB & SDB. Chikhali
(1,081m): 6 males and 2 females on 26.vii.20, observed by SB & SB. Kaas Lake (1,124m): 4 males on 02. viii. 20, observed by
PAP.
Description of
holotype male (Image 2A & 3)
Measurements (in mm): TL
(including appendages) 51, AL 42, FL 4.0, HL 31.
Head: The
coloration of the live insect is described below (in the dead insect the colours fade with respect to the hues). Labium dark amber brown to black. Labrum reddish-orange with a faint and
obscure median streak and the mandible with same colour
and a faint transverse upper streak. Anteclypeus shiny dark amber brown to black. Postclypeus
pinkish-red with two thin black paradorsal vertical
lines and two lateral black spots near the anterio-lateral
margin. Antefrons
brownish-red and postfrons brownish-black. Genae are red
inferiorly, middle part orange yellow and superior third red. Eyes dark amber black superiorly, middle part
and laterally dark amber brown and the inferolateral aspect pale brown. Antennae shiny black and vertex matt black,
with an ill-defined and obscure reddish patch, twice the size of the ocelli,
with suffused margins running between the lateral ocellus and the base of the
antenna on each side. This spot may be
difficult to see once the specimen is preserved. The
occiput, occipital bar and post-ocular region are greyish-matt black
(Image 3B).
Prothorax: coloured in matt black with vermilion red spots. Anterior lobe is black with two small reddish
spots at the medial part of the lateral third.
Middle lobe black with the lateral triangular spots vermilion red, notopleural suture black and propleuron
brownish-red. Posterior lobe black with
the lateral angles pale brownish-red. No
spines present (Image 3C).
Pterothorax: The ground colour of the pterothorax in the
live insect is bright red with pinkish hue inferolaterally
and orange dorsally. Dorsal carina
black. The triangular mesothoracic acrotergite
black. The paradorsal
region on either side black. Nearly the
whole humeral suture and the dorsal fifth of the interpleural suture marked in
matt black. Mesostigmal
plate black with its anterior edge pale pinkish-red. Mesepisternum red
and encloses a thick black central mesepisternal
stripe as thick as the paradorsal black band. This red ground colour
of the mesepisternum not interrupted and is
continuous all around the central black band, though very narrowly connected on
the dorsal aspect near the antealar sinus. Thus, in other words the antehumeral
stripe and the humeral stripes are connected around the central black band, and
is coloured orange-red, the former being more orange
and the later more red. Mesepimeron coloured red and
encloses a central black band, with the red continuous all around the black
band. Mesinfraepisternum
is bordered with pale pinkish-red and has a large black spot occupying its
antero-inferolateral aspect. The second
lateral suture marked in back on its dorsal third. Metepisternum
and Metepimeron are fully red. Metinfraepisternum
pale pinkish-red and its lower part is paler.
Metathoracic spiracle amber brown (Image 3C).
Legs: Coxae are
anteriorly greyish and pinkish on the postero-lateral
aspect. The trochanter, femur, tibia,
tarsus and the claws all are grey graphite black. The femur have an inconspicuous pale pinkish
wash on the superior part of the flexor aspect (Image 3C).
Wings: Fw is hyaline and its tip up to 3–4 cell are faintly effumed. Veins are
black. Left Fw
Ax-24 & Px-35; right Fw Ax 25 & Px 36; left Hw Ax 18 & Px 32; right Hw Ax 18 & Px 31. Pt is black
and is 10–11 cell wide in Fw and in Hw. Hw is hyaline and its distal fourth is coloured
black with a metallic purplish to lilac violet reflex in some lights. The proximal margin of this black patch is
convex and extends to 7 cells proximal to the Pt. Veins are black and has 18–19 Ax and 31 Px. Pt is black and
is 10 cell wide. Cubital space with 3
cross veins in Fw and 3–4 cross veins in Hw (Image 2B & C).
Abdomen: The general colour of abdomen is red on the proximal segments and black
on the distal ones. The transition take
place in S5-6, where the dorsal red merges with ventral black (Image
2A&3A). Segmental joints black. S1–S4 is fully red throughout. S2 with well-developed pseudoauricle
on each side which bears two tiny black teeth at its summit; it is coloured pinkish-red on their lateral aspect. S5 is dorsally red, this red enclosing the
base of the segment and distally it narrows to reach just short of the end of
the segment. The distal end of the
segment is black and this black color runs inferiorly and anteriorly but never
reaches the base of the segment. S6 has
its dorsal proximal third red and this extends along the lateral aspect of the
segment to reach almost the half of the segment, and rest of the distal part
black. S7 is wholly black except for a
small baso-lateral red spot on each side. S8–10 are wholly black. A tuft of sparce
stub black hair is seen on tergite of segment 9 near its base. No other hair tufts are seen on the ventrum of abdomen on S8 or S9. On ventral view, the gonopore margin trapezoid
shaped, wider distally. Gonocoxae with their apices produced into small spines that
are divergent at the tip. No tooth on
the distal aspect sternite of S9 near the
gonopore. Distal margin of S10 ‘{’
shaped, hence curved and wavy at its mid-ventrum. On lateral view, the mid part of distal
margin of S9 does not extend much as tooth, over the gonopore (Image 11G). Abdominal segment 9 twice the length of S10.
S10 bears a broad dorsal carina and a broad keel at its distal end (Image
2D&E).
Genitalia: S2 genital
vesicle matt black, with distal border and angles rounded, transversely rugose
about its anterior third; its proximal extension is square and shallowly
excavated. Genital lingula
illustrated. Penis with six setae one
each side (Image 2F&G).
Anal appendages: The
anal appendages are very similar to that of other species in the genus. They have forcipate cerci and tiny paraprocts. Paraprocts with tips medially directed and hence tips
converge at rest. Paraprocts
of same length as the gonocoxae. The size of paraprocts
are much smaller than the S10 dorsal keel.
Lamina of cerci as in E.
cardinalis, but with the tip slightly more incurved (Image 11B&G). The cerci and paraprocts
are fully black (Image 2D&E).
Description of
paratype female (Image 4)
Measurements (in mm):
TL (including appendages) 42, AL 33, FL 32 & HL 33 mm.
Head: Labium black;
labrum pale dirty white with a faint and obscure suggestion of the median black
tongue; Anteclypeus blackish-amber brown; Postclypeus pale greenish-white with the vertical paradorsal black streaks extending laterally as suffused
black patch obscuring the black streak on the lateral aspect its anterior
border, thus appearing as grossly black with a central pale bluish-white patch;
Antefrons centrally black and laterally pale greenish
white; Post frons matt black; Genae pale
greenish-white to almost white; antennae black, Vertex and occiput black; eyes
as in the males black and paler inferiorly (Image 4B).
Prothorax: Structure
and coloration of all the three lobes are closely similar to that in the male,
but coloured pale yellowish instead of pinkish-red,
otherwise matt black. No ornamentations
or spines present (Image 4C).
Pterothorax: The reds of the
males are replaced by pale greenish-white.
The mesepisternum mesepimeron,
metepisternum are as in the males, but with the
orange and red colours replaced with pale
greenish-yellow. The central black
stripe in mesepisternum and the and metepisternum are as in the males. In addition the metepimeron
has a similar black streak, that the male lacks. Rest of the pterothorax
is as in the males with the reds replaced by pale greenish-yellow (Image 4C).
Legs: Coxae are coloured posterolaterally in pale
dirty greenish-white, and rest of the parts of the legs are matt black as in
the male and is mildly pruinosed (Image 4C).
Wings: Both wings
hyaline. Left Fw
Ax-22 & Px-3; right Fw Ax 21 & Px 29; left Hw Ax 19 & Px 26; right Hw Ax 20 & Px 24. Pt is black
and is 9–10 cell wide in Fw and 9–11 cell wide in Hw. Wings are hyaline
with a faint smoky hue in life.
Abdomen: All segments
are black dorsally with lateral pale greenish-yellow markings as follows: S2–3
with a large spot posterolaterally and the black of
this anterolaterally merge with the yellow as brownish suffusion, S2–3 with a
very narrow stripe, S4 similar to S3 but the black posterolateral spot and its
proximal suffusion is much darker, S5 with a anterolateral ‘T’ shaped yellow
mark whose central streak tapers and ends at the distal thirds, S6–7 with this
anterolateral yellow streak progressively reduced to mere yellowish
anterolateral triangles. S8-10 are fully
black. Vulvar scale with a central
shallow but wide sulcus and its postero-lateral angle
is rounded. Anal appendages and
ovipositor are black (Image 12F).
Variations
Males: There are some
variation in the morphometrics (n= 4).
Measurements (in mm) are TL (including appendages) 5.06 ± 0.21, FL 3.73
± 0.23, HL 34.5±0.7 & AL 39.5 ± 0.71.
There are only minor variations in hues and extent of coloration amongst
males that we photographed from the region.
In venation, in the Fw the number of Ax varies
from 20–25, while Px varies from 35–36. Pt is black and is 9–11 cell wide. Hw had 17–19 Ax and
29–31 Px.
Cubital space with 3–4 cross veins in all wings. The labrum, on its attached margin, in some
specimens of both sexes may have a faint and obscure suggestion of a vertical
median brownish-black band. Paratype
females (n= 4) had variations in venation, with the Fw
having 20–22 Ax and 21–24 Px, Hw
with 19–21 Ax and 24–29 Px. Cubital space with 3–5 cross-veins in Fw and 3–4 in Hw. Wings have a faint smoky hue in life. The tenerals are
slightly different in color. Males are
more orangish when young and as they mature become more reddish. In such mature individuals, red coloration of
the face and thorax is brighter, and antehumeral
stripe and spots on middle lobe of prothorax is pinkish orange. In well-marked individuals, antehumeral and the humeral stripes are interrupted by the mesepisternal central black band dorsally near the antealar sinus.
Abdominal segment 6 is colored red up to the half of the segment, but
some individuals, observed in field, had the red restricted to the basal third
to fourth.
Females: The pale
greenish-yellow of females change to pale dirty brown on the thorax and to pale
ochreous brown on the abdomen as the individuals
age. The inferolateral aspect of thorax,
coxae, trochanters, proximal femora and the ventral region of abdomen are pruinosed in older specimens. The females are sometimes heavily marked in
black in which case the humeral and antehumeral
stripes are very much reduced to thin irregular streaks. The pale greenish color of the genae may have a light blue wash in young individuals.
Etymology
The species name ‘thosegharensis’ is a toponym derived from the type
locality in Thoseghar, Satara District, Maharashtra, India.
Distribution As far as known, the
species is restricted to the high-elevation streams and riparian patches of Satara District around Thoseghar,
and Kaas Lake in Maharashtra, India.
Habitat and Ecology
The habits are as for
the genus. The males are seen guarding
parts of streams on vantage points, like rocks or on the tips of twigs. They stay on these perches for long time if
not interfered by rivals or a potential mate worth investigating. Flight period is from April to August as
inferred from past observations and photographs. The individuals are almost always found in the
area of shallow, flowing stream with tree canopy at the edges. Males are often seen sitting on the rocks in
the stream and show territorial behaviour (Image
5). Females are seen resting on the dry
twigs along the edges of streams. Both
retire on the dry bush twigs at the edges of streams to roost overnight.
Differential diagnosis
(Table 1, 2)
The new species can
be easily differentiated from all the known Euphaea
species of Western Ghats based on morphology (Table 1) and coloration
(Table 2). Based on the morphological
features, it is differentiated from all others by its smaller size (Hw 34–35 mm, Abdomen 39–40 mm); the male genital vesicle
being black with distal borders rounded and a tuft of sparce
stub hairs on sternum of S9 only; the gonopore margin trapezoid shaped, wider
distally; and the gonocoxae with their apices produced
into small spines that are divergent at the tip. From E. fraseri,
it can be differentiated based on the presence of hair tufts on the
former. Length of S9 twice the length of
S10 in E. thosegharensis, and this
distinguishes it from E. dispar and E. pseudodispar, both of them having S9 length 1.5 times
the length of S10, whereas in E. cardinalis S9 and S10 are
of equal length. Also, this species has
no tooth on the distal aspect sternite of S9 near the
gonopore unlike in E. cardinalis.
The insect is of small size in comparison with E. cardinalis and E.
dispar, and is almost the same size as E. fraseri. Based
on coloration, it is distinguished from all its congeners by the orange labrum,
orange-red genae, rose red spots on lateral aspect of
middle lobe of prothorax, orange red antehumeral
stripe, all legs being black and the apical fourth of Hw
being black. The coloration of labrum is
similar to E. cardinalis and the antehumeral
stripes are closer to E. dispar and E.
cardinalis (Image 11B).
Euphaea pseudodispar
Sadasivan & Bhakare, sp. nov.
(Image 6 A–G)
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:C46D7583-27B0-40A3-919C-6DC353E6FE9D
Holotype:
ZSI/WGRC/I.R-INV.15033, 26.vii.20, Male, wet specimen in alcohol, Thoseghar, Satara District,
Maharashtra, India, 1,060m, specimen collected from a paddy field near flowing
stream, coll. SDB.
Paratype:
ZSI/WGRC/I.R-INV.15034, 26.vii.20, female, same information as the Holotype.
Additional material
examined: Males (n= 4) and females (n= 3) bears the same
collection data as the holotype, wet specimens in alcohol, will be subsequently
deposited in collections of ZSI Kozhikode & Pune and BNHS Mumbai.
Additional field
records (specimens not collected): Thoseghar (1,060m): 3 males
and 1 female on 02.vii.20; 4 males and 2 females on 15.vii.20; 2 males and 2
females on 26.vii.20; 5 males and 3 females on 04.viii.20; 5 males and 2
females on 06.viii.20; all observations by SHB & SDB. Kaas
Lake (1,124 m): 3 males on 02.viii.20; observed by PAP.
Description of
holotype male (Image 6)
Measurements (in mm): TL
(including appendages) 47; AL 36; FL 33 & HL 31.
Head: Labium coloured dark amber brown to black; labrum pale
bluish-white with a very distinct and prominent
median black ‘tongue’ shaped mark at its attached end. Mandible pale
bluish-white with an upper transverse black streak. Anteclypeus shiny
dark amber brown to black and postclypeus is black, antefrons & postfrons black
and the genae pale bluish-white. Eyes black superiorly, middle part and
laterally dark amber brownish-black and the inferolateral aspect brown;
antennae shiny black; vertex matt black; occiput, occipital bar and post-ocular
region are matt black (Image 7B).
Prothorax: coloured in matt black with yellowish spots. Anterior lobe
fully black; middle lobe black with the lateral triangular spots yellowish, notopleural suture black and propleuron
is mat black with a pair of indistinct reddish spots. Posterior lobe black with no ornamentations
or spines present (Image 7C).
Pterothorax: The ground colour of the Pterothorax in the
live insect is orange red with orange hue inferiorly and yellow dorsally. Dorsal carina is black. The triangular mesothoracic acrotergite
black. The dorsal aspect of thorax- the Mesepisternum fully matt black. The humeral stripe yellowish orange, thin and
irregular and is separated into a small spot on the dorsal end and the long
stripe inferiorly. The antehumeral stripe pale yellow and tapers gradually towards
the alar sinus. Thus, in other words the
antehumeral stripe and the humeral stripes are not
connected and significantly tapers dorsally.
Mesostigmal plate mat black with its lateral
lip pale pinkish-red. Mesinfraepisternum bordered with orange in the
posterolateral aspect and antero-superiorly is black; these colours
being separated sharply at the diagonal running from postero-superior
to antero-inferior corners. Mesepimeron yellow superiorly and orange inferiorly, and
encloses a central broad black band. The
interpleural suture marked in reddish-black and this patch extends to about the
middle of the mesepimeron. The second lateral suture marked in back on
its dorsal third. Metepisternum
and metepimeron are fully yellowish-orange. Metinfraepisternum
brownish-orange. Venter of metathorax
pale pinkish-orange. Metathoracic
spiracle pale yellowish-white (Image 7C).
Legs: Coxae and
trochanter of forelegs brown anteriorly and grey posteriorly. Coxae of mid and posterior legs
brownish-orange. The femur, tibia,
tarsus and the claws of legs are lustreless red with
a cyan hue. The extensor surface of
forelegs on the superior third are black.
Knees are black. Claws are
reddish-black to almost black (Image 7C).
Wings: Fw are hyaline, veins are black. Left Fw Ax-24 &
Px-34; right Fw Ax 22 & Px
32; left Hw Ax 19 & Px
31; right Hw Ax 19 & Px
30. Pt is black and is 10 cell wide in Fw and 11 cell wide in Hw. Hindwing hyaline and its distal fifth coloured black with a metallic coppery to lilac reflex in
some lights. The proximal margin of this
black patch convex and extends to four cells proximal to the Pt. Cubital space with three cross veins in all
wings (Image 6B&C).
Abdomen: The general colour of abdomen reddish-orange on the proximal segments
and black on the distal ones. The
transition take place in S6, where the dorsal red merges with ventral black
(Image 7A). Segmental joints black. S1
yellowish and posteriorly with orange wash.
S2 anteriorly orange and distally reddish-orange. S2 with a non-flanged pseudoauricle
on each side which bears few tiny teeth at its summit. S3 fully reddish-orange throughout. The distal aspect of S4 near the joint with
S5 with a brownish hue. S5 also reddish
orange with its distal fifth brownish-black.
Proximal half of S6 orange red and its distal half is black, and this
transition of red to black is gradual.
S7–10 fully black. S10 bears a
broad dorsal carina and an abrupt dorsal keel at its distal end. A very small inconspicuous patch of
moderately long brownish-orange hairs on lateral aspect of proximal part of S1,
S2, and S3. A tuft of black hair seen on
base of tergite of segment 8. On ventral
view, S8 tergite with long hairs on its lateral border and the longest ones at
its distal third. S9 tergite with long
hairs on its proximal half. The sternite of S8 and
S9 with a tuft of very sparse short hairs on its proximal aspect of its
base. On ventral view, the gonopore
margin oval. Gonocoxae
with their apices blunt, no spine. No
tooth on the distal aspect sternite of S9 near the
gonopore. Distal margin of S10 ‘{’
shaped, hence curved and wavy at its mid-ventrum. On lateral view, the mid part of distal
margin of S9 prominently extending ventrally and it’s tip extends as a very
short tooth, over the gonopore (Image 11I).
S9 1.5 times the length of S10.
On lateral view, the tips of paraprocts hooked,
with tip directed dorsally (Image 6D).
Genitalia: S2 with a
matt brownish black, rhomboidal genital vesicle, with distal end angulated, and
no transverse surface rugosities (Image 12D).
Genital lingula illustrated. Penis with a single setae on each side (Image
6F&G).
Anal appendages: The
general structure is as in the genus with the cerci and paraprocts
fully black. The cerci are
forcipate. On ventral view, paraprocts with tips medially directed and hence tips
converge at rest. Length of paraprocts longer than that of the gonocoxae. The size of paraprocts
as large as the S10 dorsal prominence (Image 6D&E, 11I).
Description of
paratype female (Image 8)
Measurements (in mm):
TL (including appendages) 41, AL 30, FL 32 & HL 30.
Head: Labium black;
labrum pale bluish-white with a prominent median black tongue; mandible pale
bluish-white with the upper transverse black streak as in the male; Anteclypeus postclypeus, antefrons and postfrons are matt
black; Genae pale bluish-white; antennae black, Vertex
and occiput matt black; eyes as in the males black and brown inferiorly (Image
8B).
Prothorax: Structure
and pattern of coloration all the three lobes are as in the males. The lateral spots on middle lobe is coloured pale yellowish-white, otherwise the whole
structure is matt black. No spines
present on posterior lobe (Image 8C).
Pterothorax: The reds of the
males are replaced by pale greenish-white.
The antehumeral and humeral stripes are pale
yellowish-blue to pale blue. The mesepisternum, mesepimeron, and metepisternum are as in the male, with the orange and red
replaced with pale bluish-yellow. The
central black stripe in mesepisternum and the metepisternum are as in the males. Rest of the pterothorax
is as in male, with the reds replaced by pale bluish to greenish-yellow (Image
8C).
Legs: Coxae are coloured posterolaterally by pale
dirty greenish-white and are usually pruinosed. The trochanters are grey. The femurs, tibia, tarsus and claws are
black. The flexor aspect of the proximal
fourth of forelegs, and whole length of the mid and hind tibia are coloured white (Image 8C).
Wings: Both wings
hyaline. Left Fw
Ax-21 & Px-29; right Fw Ax 21 & Px 30; left Hw Ax 17 & Px 28; right Hw Ax 17 & Px 27. Pt is black
and is 10–11 cell wide in Fw and Hw.
Abdomen: All segments
from S1 are black dorsally with a thin dorsal carinal yellow streak. Laterally, the inferior half of all segments
have yellow transverse streaks that thin out distally. The dorsal carinal streaks disappear at S6,
while the lateral yellow streaks disappear after S7. The rest of the abdomen on its ventrum and the segments 8–10 are fully black. Vulvar scale without any central sulcus and
its postero-lateral angle is produced as an postero-medially directed wide and blunt tooth (Image
12G). Appendages and ovipositor are
black.
Variations
Males: In the
paratype males (n= 4), with regards to the morphometrics there are some
variations. The measurements (in mm) are
TL (including appendages) 4.7 ± 0.7, FL 3.3 ± 0.1, HL 32.5 ± 0.7 & AL 36.5
± 2.12. With respect to the coloration,
the variation is usually restricted to the humeral stripes which may be thinned
out to become a streak inferiorly and spot superiorly, or sometimes becomes a
thin and irregular one along its entire length in some specimens as observed in
field. Venation showed some variation
with Fw having Ax range of 22–26 and Px of 32–34 and the Hw have 19–24
Ax, and 30–31 Px.
Pt was 10–11 cells wide and the wings had usually three cubital cross
veins.
Female: The paratype
females (n= 2), had a variation in abdominal length from 30–33 mm-and Hw length from 30–33 mm.
Not much variation in colour was noted. The variations in venation was with the Fw having Ax 21–22 & Px
29–32, and the Hw with Ax 17–19 & Px 27–28. Pt are 8–11
cells wide and there were 2–3 cubital cross veins.
Etymology
The species name pseudodispar
is coined as reminder to the close resemblance to the species E. dispar (Rambur, 1842) in coloration.
Distribution
As far as known, the
species is restricted to the high-elevation streams and riparian patches of Thoseghar, Satara district, in
Maharashtra, India.
Habitat and Ecology
The habits are as for
the genus and this species shares the habitat with E. thosegharensis
Sadasivan & Bhakare,
sp. nov.
Flight period is from June to September as per our field observations
and past field records.
Differential
diagnosis
This species can be
easily differentiated from all the known Euphaea
species of the Western Ghats based on morphology and coloration (Table 1,
2). The new species can be distinguished
from E. dispar by the extensor surface of
foreleg femora being black and those of hind and middle legs red as in E. fraseri, but with no yellow patch on legs as in E. dispar. Only the
apical fifth of Hw are black in this species
while the apical fourth of Hw are black in E. dispar, the genae of face are
yellowish-white in the new species while it is black in E. dispar (Image 11C&D). The color of legs are as in E. fraseri. Segment
9 is 1.5 times the length of S10 in this species, as is in E. dispar; while they are of equal length in
E. cardinalis and S9 twice the length of S10 in E. thosegharensis (See key below). The new species can be distinguished from
E. fraseri by the absence of hair tufts in the
males of the latter. The colour of labrum is as seen in E. dispar
with labrum being pale blue with its distal free border very thinly
bordered with black, and with a prominent median black tongue. The pale turquoise blue labrum distinguishes
it from E. cardinalis and E. thosegharensis
both of which have orange to red labrum (Image A&B). The species appears similar to E. fraseri and E. dispar,
because of the bluish labrum. The labrum
of E. fraseri is coloured
black in the inferior half and pale blue in the superior half and has no median
black tongue (Image 11E), while the pattern in the new species is as in E. dispar. With
respect to secondary genitalia, the penis bears a single seta on each side for
the E. pseudodispar, while three
pairs of setae are seen in E. dispar (Image
12H). For additional morphological
differences in characters see Table 1.
The females of the E.
pseudodispar can be easily differentiated from
E. thosegharensis based on the bluish-white
labrum with prominent black ‘tongue’ of the former (dirty white with indistinct
central tongue in E. thosegharensis), the
black postclypeus (pale patch on postclypeus
in E. thosegharensis) the wider posterior lobe
of prothorax (shorter posterior lobe in the latter), the structure of the
vulvar scale without any central sulcus and its postero-lateral
angle being produced as a wide and blunt tooth (rounded with no tooth E. thosegharensis) and black legs with white flexor
patches (E. thosegharensis has them fully
black).
Discussion
This paper describes
two new species of Euphaea from the Western
Ghats of Peninsular India. Though the
insects are superficially similar to other Euphaea
of Western Ghats, these two new species can be differentiated from all the
others with distinct features in morphology and coloration.
Morphologically, the
five species of Euphaea are easily told
apart. Regarding the size of the
species, E. cardinalis and E. dispar (TL 53.25 ± 1.06 mm) are large species and so is
E. thosegharensis (TL 50.6 ± 2.1 mm). All these three species have total lengths
more than 5cm. While E. fraseri (TL 45.7 ± 2.1 mm) and E. pseudodispar (TL 47.0 ± 0.7 mm) are much smaller, with
total lengths always less than 5cm.
Since the structure of anal appendages are similar, the best characters
to depend are the structure of the male vesicle and the male abdominal hair
tufts best seen on ventral view. With
respect to the smaller species, E. fraseri has
no hair tufts on the ventral side of abdomen on S8 or S9 (Image 11J), while E.
pseudodispar has tufts on central part of sternite and lateral aspects of tergite on S8 and lateral
tufts on proximal aspect of tergite of S9 (Image 11 I). Among the three larger species, E.
cardinalis has hairs on S8 and S9 with tufts of long ventral hairs on the sternites; while, E. dispar has
tuft at apex of S8 sternite and a tuft of short black
hairs on its ventral surface, and about eight long stiff black hairs beneath
the base of S9 sternite (Image 11H); and E. thosegharensis has a tuft of sparce
stub black hair on either side of tergite of S9 and no hair tufts on S8 (Image
11G). The male genital vesicles are also
a dependable character to differentiate them. The smaller species, E. fraseri has red colored, longitudinally elongated,
apple shaped, while in E. pseudodispar they
are brownish-black and pear shaped.
Among the larger species, E. cardinalis has black hexagonal
vesicle with rounded angles; while E. thosegharensis
has them rounded and matt black; and in E. dispar
they are matt black and scrotal shaped (Image 12 A & B).
With regards to coloration, we observed that the
colors of the labrum and that of the legs of the insects were dependable field
characters, the later was already used by Fraser (1934) for his keys to Euphaea. The
bright yellow patches on femurs of E. dispar identifies
it easily from all the other species.
Blue labrum can be seen in three species, E. fraseri,
E. dispar and E. pseudodispar. Amongst them, E. fraseri
can be told apart by the labrum with inferior half black, superior
half bluish-white, no median black ‘tongue’; while the other two species have
labrum pale turquoise blue with its distal free border very thinly bordered
with black, and with a prominent median black ‘tongue’. E. dispar (TL 53.25 ± 1.06 mm) can be distinguished
from E. pseudodispar (TL 47.0 ± 0.70 mm) by
its large size, having yellow patches on femur, black genae
and in addition the differences in male vesicle and hair tufts under S8 &
S9. Species with orange-ochre to
vermilion red are E. cardinalis and E. thosegharensis. These are large insects of almost same size,
but can be differentiated by the absence of hair tufts under S8 in E. thosegharensis (S8 and S9 with tufts of long ventral
hairs in E. cardinalis) and the less extensive black apical patch in Hw in E. thosegharensis (restricted
to apical fourth), while almost the apical half of Hw
is black in E. cardinalis.
With respect to
geographical distribution, E. pseudodispar and
E. thosegharensis, both are restricted to
the northern Western Ghats region north of the Amboli
Ghats, and hence endemic to the region.
The new species is seen in the higher reaches above 1,000m. Euphaea
cardinalis is restricted to mountains south of the Palghat Gap, and E. dispar is distributed on mountains between the Palghat
gap and Coorg. These two montane species
are restricted below the Goa gap. With
respect to geographical distribution E. fraseri
is the only species seen in the same geographical region north of the Amboli Ghats. But,
E. fraseri is probably distributed only in the
lower elevations around the foothills below 900m all along the Western
Ghats. The new taxa are currently known
only from Kaas and Thoseghar
regions of Satara District of Maharashtra. The species were probably overlooked for
their superficial similarity to other species of Euphaea
known from the Western Ghats. This
discovery highlights the need for more systematic surveys of invertebrates in
the northern Western Ghats.
Table 1.
Morphological comparison between males of Euphaea
species of Western Ghats.
|
Species |
Total length, Abdomen
length (both including appendages), Fw and Hw length (in mm) |
Venation |
Male genital
vesicle and pseudoauricle, and abdominal hair
tufts of males |
Appendages and gonocoxae |
|
E. cardinalis (Image 11F, 12A) |
Large species TL 52.5 ± 0.70 AL 43.0 ± 2.83 FL 40.0 ± 1.00 HL 38.0 ± 2.80 |
Fw Ax 23-25 Px 40 Pt 11 cell wide Hw Ax 17-18 Px 36-40 Pt 11 cell wide |
Male genital
vesicle black, hexagonal with rounded angles and distal margin round. Surface
transversely rugose. On ventral view, S8
tergite with long hairs on its middle third and S9 tergite with long hairs on
its proximal half. The sternites of S8 and S9 with
no hair tufts. |
On ventral view,
the distal margin of S9 forming the border of the gonopore is ‘C’ shaped. Gonocoxae with their apices blunt, no spine. A pair of
anteriorly directed blunt tooth on the distal aspect sternite
of S9 near the gonopore. Distal margin of S10 ‘[’ shaped, hence rectangular
and stepped, at its mid-ventrum. On lateral view
the mid-ventral part of distal margin of S9 extends over the gonopore as a
long blunt tooth. S9 and S10 of equal length. Paraprocts with tips medially
directed and hence tips converge to a point at rest. Paraprocts
of same length as the gonocoxae. Lamina of cerci
not well developed as in E. dispar. |
|
E. thosegharensis sp. nov. (Image 11G, 12B) |
Large species TL 50.6 ± 2.10 AL 39.5 ± 0.71 FL 37.3 ± 2.30 HL 34.5 ± 0.70 |
Fw Ax 20-25 Px 35-36 Pt 9-11 cell wide Hw Ax 17-19 Px 29-31 Pt 9-11 cell wide |
Male genital
vesicle black matt black, with distal border rounded angles and distal margin
round. Surface transversely rugose. On ventral view,
tergites of S8 and S9 with no hair tufts. A tuft of sparce
stub black hair is seen on sternite of S9. |
On ventral view,
the gonopore margin trapezoid shaped, wider distally. Gonocoxae
with their apices produced into small spines that are divergent at the tip.
No tooth on the distal aspect sternite of S9 near
the gonopore. Distal margin of S10 ‘{’
shaped, hence curved and wavy at its mid-ventrum.
On lateral view, the mid-ventral part of distal margin of S9 does not extend
as tooth, over the gonopore. S9 twice the length of S10. Paraprocts with tips medially
directed and hence tips converge at rest. Paraprocts
of same length as the gonocoxae. Lamina of cerci as
in E. cardinalis, but with the
tip slightly more incurved. |
|
E. dispar (Image 11H, 12C) |
Large species TL 53.25 ± 1.06 AL 41.50 ± 2.12 FL 38.25 ± 0.35 HL 36.0 ± 1.41 |
Fw Ax 20-22 Px 31-32 Pt 10 cell wide Hw Ax 18 Px 31-33 Pt 10 cell wide |
Male genital
vesicle black matt black, rhomboid shaped with distal margin round, and
surface with very fine transverse rugosities. On ventral view,
the pseudoauricle rounded, less prominent than in E. cardinalis. S8 tergite with
long hairs on distal half of its lateral border. S9 tergite with long hairs
on its proximal half. The sternite of S8 with a tuft of very sparse short hairs on
its proximal aspect of its base. Sternite of S9
without very sparce hairs at its base. A very small
inconspicuous patch of moderately long brownish-orange hairs on lateral
aspect of proximal S1 and S2. Penis with 3 setae on each side (Image 12. H). |
On ventral view,
the distal margin of S9 forming the border of the gonopore is ‘C’ shaped. Gonocoxae with their apices blunt, no spines. No tooth on
the distal aspect sternite of S9 near the gonopore.
Distal margin of S10 ‘{’ shaped, hence curved and wavy at its mid-ventrum. S9 1.5
times the length of S10. Paraprocts longer than the
gonocoxae. On lateral
view, sternite
of S9 not prominently extending
mid-ventrally as in E. pseudodispar. The mid part of distal margin of S9
does not conspicuously extend over the gonopore. The dorsal prominence on S10
is robust and its superior border slightly curved on lateral view. |
|
E. pseudodispar sp. nov. (Image 11I, 12D) |
Small species TL 47.0 ± 0.70 AL 36.5 ± 2.12 FL 33.0 ± 1.00 HL 32.5 ± 0.70 |
Fw Ax 22-24 Px 32-34 Pt 10 cell wide Hw Ax 19 Px 30-31 Pt 11 cell wide |
Male genital
vesicle brownish-black, rhomboidal, with distal end angulated and surface
with no transverse rugosities. On ventral view, the pseudoauricle
angular, and more prominent than in E. dispar. Penis with a
single seta on each side. Hair tufts as in
E. dispar. In addition a very small
inconspicuous patch of moderately long brownish-orange hairs on lateral
aspect of proximal S3. |
Terminal segments
and appendages and Gonocoxae are similar to E. dispar. On lateral view, sternite of S9 very prominently extending mid-ventrally
like a beak. The mid part of distal margin of this S9 beak extends as a very
short tooth, over the gonopore. The dorsal prominence on S10 is short,
angular and its superior border is straight on lateral view. |
|
E. fraseri (Image 11J, 12E) |
Small species TL 45.7 ± 2.10 AL 38.5 ± 3.54 FL 36.0 ± 2.8 0 HL 32.0 ± 4.20 |
Fw Ax 17-19 Px 26-29 Pt 9-11 cell wide Hw Ax 15-16 Px 26-27 Pt 9-10 cell wide |
Male genital
vesicle red, longitudinally elongated, apple shaped and distal margin
round. Surface transversely rugose. Pseudoauricles not expanded laterally on ventral view. No
hair tufts |
The gonopore margin
“W” shaped with the apices rounded and its arms divergent. Gonocoxae flat and without any spines. Distal margin of S10 ‘{’ shaped, hence
curved and wavy at its mid-ventrum. S9 is a little less than 1.5 times the
length of S10. Paraprocts longer than gonocoxae. On lateral
view, Sternite
of S9 not extending mid-ventrally. |
Table 2. Coloration
comparison between males of Euphaea species of
Western Ghats.
|
Species |
Labrum |
Genae |
Lateral spots on
middle lobe of prothorax |
Antehumeral stripe |
Femur |
Black apices of
wing |
|
E. cardinalis (Image 9A,10A,11A) |
Labrum bright ochreous-orange, narrowly bordered with reddish-brown,
and an obscure mediobasal ‘tongue’ of dark brown |
Orange |
Yellow orange |
Yellow orange |
All legs red |
Almost apical half
(or slightly less) of Hw black |
|
E. thosegharensis sp. nov. (Image 9B, 3A 11B) |
Reddish-orange with
a faint and obscure median streak |
Orange red |
Rose red |
Orange red |
All legs black |
Apical fourth of Hw black |
|
E. dispar (Image 9C, 10B,11C) |
Labrum
turquoise-blue, finely bordered with black and with a black mediobasal ‘tongue’ |
Black |
Orange yellow |
Yellow |
Fully red, with
yellow patches |
Apical fourth of Hw black. The tips of Fw tipped
with blackish-brown |
|
E. pseudodispar sp. nov. (Image 9D, 7A, 11D) |
Labrum
turquoise-blue, finely bordered with black and with a black mediobasal ‘tongue’ |
Pale
yellowish-white |
Pale
yellowish-white |
Yellow |
Font legs black,
mid and hindlegs red |
Apical fifth of Hw black Fw hyaline at the
tips |
|
E. fraseri (Image 9E, 10C,
11E) |
Labrum pale
azure-blue, with its anterior
border broadly black, no medio-basal black ‘tongue’ |
Pale yellowish |
Blue |
bright azure blue |
Font legs black,
Mid and hindlegs red |
Apical fourth of Hw black |
Revised key to males of the genus Euphaea
Selys, 1840 of Western Ghats, peninsular India
(for additional characters see Table 1&2)
Tufts of ventral hairs on terminal abdominal segments
of males present; Antehumeral stripes on thorax not
azure blue; Lateral
aspect of middle lobe of prothorax with orange spots
…………………..………..………..………..………..………..……….……………. 2
- Tufts of
ventral hairs on terminal abdominal segments of males absent; Antehumeral stripes bright azure blue and lateral aspect of middle lobe of
prothorax with an azure blue or pale blue spot; Male genital vesicle red,
longitudinally elongated,
apple
shaped. TL 45.7± 2.10 mm ……………………..………….………………………………………………………………. E. fraseri (Laidlaw, 1920)
Labrum pale turquoise blue;
antehumeral stripe yellowish ……………………..………..……..……..……………………………………………… 3
- Labrum orange-ochre to vermilion red; antehumeral
stripe reddish-orange ….………………..………..………..………………………….. 4
Extensor surface of all femora black, flexor surface
of proximal 2/3rd all femora with bright yellow patch; Fw tipped with blackish-brown, apical fourth of Hw black; Genae black. Male genital
vesicle black with distal border rounded and with fine transverse rugosities. Penis with three
pairs of setae. Sternite of S9 not prominently
extending ventrally. TL 53.25 ± 1.06
mm ………………..………..………..………..………..………..………..………..………..………..………………….…..… E. dispar (Rambur, 1842)
- Extensor
surface of all femora black, no yellow patch on legs; Only apical fifth
of Hw black; Genae
yellowish white. Male genital
vesicle brownish black & rhomboid-shaped and with no transverse rugosities.
Penis with single seta on each side. Sternite
of S9 very prominently extending ventrally like a beak. TL 47.0 ± 0.70 mm
..……..………..………..….……..………..………..…
……..………..………..………..………..………..………..………..…...……..………..………..…...
E. pseudodispar Sadasivan
& Bhakare, sp. nov.
Extensor and flexor surface of all femora bright red;
Apical half of Hw black; S8 and S9 with tufts of long
ventral hairs. Male genital vesicle black and hexagonal
in shape with rounded angles. S9 and S10 of equal length. TL 52.5 ± 0.70 mm ……
……..………..………..………..………..………..………..………..……….……………………………..…………..……………......E.
cardinalis (Fraser, 1924)
- Extensor and
flexor surface of all femora black; Apical fourth of Hw
black; A tuft of sparse stub black hair on either side of
tergite of S9. Male genital vesicle matt black, with distal border rounded
angles. S9 twice the length of S10. TL 50.6 ±
2.10mm
………..………..………..………..………..………..………..………..…......…..…… E. thosegharensis Sadasivan
& Bhakare, sp. nov.
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