Urothemis venata Dijkstra, Mézière & Kipping ^ZBK sp. nov. – Red-veined Basker

(Type Photo 57, Photos 26, 73– 74, Fig. 34)

Taxonomy

Combines the blue pruinose body of U. edwardsii (Selys, 1849) with the red venation of the other African Urothemis Brauer, 1868 species. This combination is unique, as are genetic and morphological details, and thus treated as a distinct species by Dijkstra & Clausnitzer (2014).

Material studied

Holotype ♂. RMNH.INS.503166, Sierra Leone, Eastern Province, Gola Forest, 500 m NE of Vaama, abandoned diamond pits with swampy vegetation enclosed by forest, 208–235 m a.s.l. (7.7756 ° N 10.7148 ° W), 08-iii- 2011, leg. K.- D.B. Dijkstra & A. Dayeker, RMNH .

Further material. GABON (Haut-Ogooué Province): 8 ♂ 2 ♂ ♀, “ Africa No 1 ” radio station, Moyabi, swamp and treed savanna, 456 m a.s.l (1.7029 ° S 13.3198 ° E), 18 -x- 2009, leg. N. Mézière, RMNH . 2 ♂ 2 ♂ ♀, Moanda-Mounana road, Moanda, forest edge pond, 362 m a.s.l. (1.5057 ° S 13.1989 ° E), 11–12 - xi- 2009, leg. N. Mézière, RMNH . 2 ♂, Massango, Chinese forestry road at entrance of Mounana, pond in treed savanna, 468 m a.s.l. (1.4556 ° S 13.1302 ° E), 18 -iv- 2010, leg. N. Mézière, RMNH . 2 ♂ (RMNH.INS.502561), 18 km SE of Moanda, “Africa No 1 ” radio station, Moyabi, swamp near Moyabi, flooded area in rainforest, 520 m a.s.l. (1.7030 ° S 13.3199 ° E), 04-i- 2010, leg. K.- D.B. Dijkstra, N. Mézière & C. Vanappelghem, RMNH . 3 ♂, Plateau d’Okouma, Mounana, lake in grassland, 583 m a.s.l. (1.4638 ° S 13.1987 ° E), 31 -x- 2010, leg. N. Mézière, RMNH . 1 ♂, Bongoville-Léconi road after Ekala, old village of Boubou, vegetated pond on road side (abandoned sand pit), 393 m a.s.l. (1.6114 ° S 13.910 ° E), 07-ii- 2010, leg N. Mézière, RMNH . 1 ♂, road to the station, Moanda, road side swamp, 405 m a.s.l. (1.0105 ° S 13.2594 ° E), 23 -i- 2010, leg. N. Mézière, RMNH . 1 ♂, road to Akieni, entrance to Omoï, open swamp and temporary ponds, 413 m a.s.l. (1.3424 ° S 13.7755 ° E), 26 -xii- 2010, leg. N. Mézière, RMNH . 1 ♂, Lac aux Caïmans, Léconi, large lake with swamps and pools, 460 m a.s.l. (1.6533 ° S 14.2763 ° E), 04-iv- 2010, leg. N. Mézière, RMNH . 1 ♂, Batéké Plateau, Eaux Claires, small sandy river (4–6m wide) with gallery forest in savanna, and associated swamp and pools, 446 m a.s.l. (1.5753 ° S 14.2014 ° E), 31 -xii- 2009, leg. N. Mézière & C. Vanappelghem, RMNH . 1 ♂, Batéké Plateau, Eaux Claires, lake in grassland, 445 m a.s.l. (1.4961 ° S 14.9748 ° E), 16 -iv- 2011, leg. N. Mézière, RMNH . 1 ♂ (RMNH.INS.502504), 8 km NW of Bakoumba, Bakoumba, Parc de la Lékédi, Sentier Botanique, small swampy stream in rainforest, 627 m a.s.l. (1.7786 ° S 12.9748 ° E), 01- i- 2010, leg. K.- D.B. Dijkstra, N. Mézière & C. Vanappelghem, RMNH . 1 ♂ (RMNH.INS.508093), Batéké Plateau, 18 km NW of Léconi, shallow, muddy lake in open savanna, surrounded by gallery forest, 425 m a.s.l. (1.4530 ° S 14.1704 ° E), 29 -i- 2012, leg. J. Kipping, CJKL . 4 ♂ (RMNH.INS.508094), same locality, 28 -ix- 2013, leg. J. Kipping, CJKL. 3 ♂ same locality, same dates, CJKL . 1 ♂, Botoso, road Moanda-Bakoumba, artificial lake in forest, 676 m a.s.l. (1.6581 ° S 12.8981 ° E), 04-ii- 2012, leg. J. Kipping, CJKL . GABON (Ngounie Province): 2 ♂ 1 ♀, Mimongo-Mouila road, open roadside swamp and stream, 584 m a.s.l. (1.6972 ° S 11.4479 ° E), 29 -iii- 2011, leg. N. Mézière, RMNH . 1 ♂, Lastoursville-Koulamoutou road, Koulamoutou, roadside swamp, 290 m a.s.l. (1.0012 ° S 12.5535 ° E), 17 -ix- 2010, leg. N. Mézière, RMNH . 1 ♂, Vuku road, Mboungou-Mbadouma, swampy standing water, 295 m a.s.l. (1.2494 ° S 13.2797 ° E), 14 -iii- 2010, leg. N. Mézière, RMNH . LIBERIA (Nimba County): 2 ♂, Mt Tokadeh, corner swamp, swampy lake in degraded forest (Photo 74), 605 m a.s.l. (7.4579 ° N 8.6664 ° W), 19 -iii- 2011, leg. K.-D.B. Dijkstra, RMNH . 3 ♂, same locality, 03-iii- 2012, leg. K.-D.B. Dijkstra & M. Darpay, RMNH . 2 ♂, Mt Tokadeh, north of corner swamp, road edge in rainforest, 676 m a.s.l. (7.4661 ° N 8.6650 ° W), 20 -iii- 2011, leg K.-D.B. Dijkstra, RMNH . 1 ♂ (RMNH.INS.504478), East Nimba Nature Reserve, Blue Lake, swampy lake borders in abandoned mining pit and outflow stream, 857 m a.s.l. (7.5400° N 8.5005 ° W), 22 -ii- 2012, leg. K.-D.B. Dijkstra & M. Darpay, RMNH . SIERRA LEONE (Eastern Province): 4 ♂ 2 ♂ ♀ (♀ RMNH.INS.503167), as holotype, RMNH . 2 ♂, Gola Forest, NE of Dukor, abandoned diamond pits with swampy vegetation, 251 m a.s.l. (7.7884 ° N 10.7071 ° W), 09-iii- 2011, leg. K.- D.B. Dijkstra & A. Dayeker, RMNH .

Genetics

Three unique haplotypes (n = 7) nearest to single sample of U. thomasi Longfield, 1932 from Oman and further from African species U. assignata (Selys, 1872) and U. edwardsii, although U. luciana Balinsky, 1961 was not sampled.

Male morphological diagnosis

Fairly large dragonfly (Hw 31.0–34.0 mm; n = 10) that recalls U. edwardsii in (a) abdomen being blue pruinose with maturity, rather than bright red. However, (1) the labium is uniformly warm brown and only rarely darkened; (2) the pruinosity is pale and uniform, rather than dark and sparing a broad black middorsal line from the abdomen base to tip; (3) the costa, subcosta and radial vein are bright red with maturity, contrasting with the blackish other veins; and (4) the hamule is only about as long as the genital lobe and distinctly less wide than it (Fig. 34). While the extent of the dark Hw basal patch is often used for identification in the genus, this species is extremely variable: the blackish markings may not even reach halfway the wing base and Ax 1, and thus not enter the anal loop, but can also surpass Ax 2 and even cover most of the triangle.

Etymology

Latin “veined” for the artery-like red wing veins (feminine adjective).

Range and ecology

First recognised from a photograph taken by Jack Windig north-east of Kindu in Congo-Kinshasa in 1983. Subsequently found commonly in south-eastern Gabon, 1 500 km west, and locally in Liberia and Sierra Leone, another 3 000km west. Probably widespread and overlooked, despite being conspicuous, occurring at richly vegetated still water near or enclosed by forest between 200 and 900 m a.s.l. Such habitats include abandoned diamond pits (Sierra Leone) and areas flooded by streams blocked by road construction (Liberia, Gabon). Records of adults are concentrated in the rainy months.