Protosticta armageddonia, Payra & Chandran & Deshpande & Koparde, 2023

Payra, Arajush, Chandran, Reji, Deshpande, Ameya & Koparde, Pankaj, 2023, Description of Protosticta armageddonia sp. nov. (Odonata: Zygoptera: Platystictidae) from the Western Ghats of India, International Journal of Odonatology 26, pp. 93-102 : 94-99

publication ID	https://doi.org/10.48156/1388.2023.1917043
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/D7046A00-FFCE-FFE5-FC9B-FF77FD7D545C
treatment provided by	Felipe
scientific name	Protosticta armageddonia
status	sp. nov.

Treatment

Protosticta armageddonia View in CoL sp. nov. Chandran, Payra, Deshpande & Koparde

Holotype

♂, Near Merchiston Estate , (8.7445 N, 77.1293 E, alt. 900 m a.s.l.), Thiruvananthapuram – Ponmudi Road, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India, 6 March 2023, R. Chandran, A. Payra, A. Deshpande & P. Koparde leg. ( ZSI. WRC /Ent.4/3061) GoogleMaps

Paratype

2 ♂♂, topotypic, 27.xii.2022, R. Chandran, A. Payra & A. Deshpande leg. ( ZSI. WRC / Ent. 4/3062 & ZSI. WRC / Ent. 4/3063) ; 3 males, topotypic. 23 February 2023, R. Chandran leg. ( ZSI. WRC / Ent. 4/3066; ZSI. WRC / Ent. 4/3067-a & ZSI. WRC / Ent. 4/3067-b &) ; 2 males, from near Merchiston Estate (8.7499 N, 77.1284 E, alt: 814 m a.s.l), 23 February 2023, R. Chandran leg. ( ZSI. WRC / Ent. 4/3068 & WGODO-265) GoogleMaps ; 3 males, topotypic, date same as holotype R. Chandran, A. Payra, A. Deshpande & P. Koparde leg. ( ZSI. WRC / Ent. 4/3064; ZSI. WRC / Ent. 4/3065 & WGODO-255) .

Etymology

The species epithet, an adjective of the word “armageddon”, signifies the concept of ecological armageddon, emphasizing the major worldwide decline in insect populations ( Hallmann et al., 2017; Cardoso et al., 2020). The suggested common English name of the new species is Armageddon Reedtail.

Description of the holotype male ( Fig. 1 View Figure 1 )

Head ( Figs 1b, c View Figure 1 ). In life, eyes black dorsally and posteriorly; anteriorly bluish black and pale blue below. Eyes pale brown post-mortem. Labium pale yellow. Labrum pale blue with black anterior margins in life. Genae bluish in life. Anteclypeus whitish blue in life, post-mortem whitish. Postclypeus glossy black. Frons, vertex and oc- ciput black with a metallic sheen. Ocelli white. Bases of antennae white, filaments brown.

Thorax ( Figs 1b, d, g View Figure 1 ). Prothorax brownish. Anterior lobe light yellowish brown with a medial dark brown spot. Lateral lobes of middle lobe brown above, with pale yellowish brown margins. Posterior lobe dark brown dorsally and pale brown laterally. Dorsal half of propleuron dark brown, pale below. Synthorax black with bronze sheen. Mesepisternum and mesepimeron bronze black. Antealar triangle black. Metepisternum dark brown to black with whitish blue stripes in life. Metepimeron mostly whitish blue in life; black to dark brown below the metapleural suture. Mesinfraepisternum black, pale towards coxa. Dorsal half of metinfraepisternum black, ventral half pale white. Ventral side of thorax predominantly pale yellowish white, marked with a pair of short, very faint brownish lateral stripes posteriorly. A black longitudinal stripe with both ends arrowheadshaped on the sternum below the terminal pair of legs. Anterior sternites black.

Legs. Coxae and trochanters white. Femora, tibia and tar- sal claws brown in life. Extensor face of the femora black.

Wings ( Fig. 1e View Figure 1 ). Hyaline, Pt dark brown, covering one and 1/5 th of the cells. Length of Pt in FW twice the width; length of Pt in HW less than twice the width. Ax-2, Px- 12 in all wings except right FW, where Px is 13. Ab ab- sent. One cell between the junction of RP1–RP2 and the origin of IR 2 in FW and HW.

Abdomen ( Figs 1a, f, h, i View Figure 1 ). Black, sparsely marked with white. Dorsum of S1 black with a small, dirty white crown-shaped marking in the centre. S1 dorsally black, creamy white laterally, bordered with black. S2 dorsally black with a narrow elongated white sheen in the dorsal third of the segment. S2 laterally creamy white, tapering posteriorly. White annules at the anterior bor- der of S3–7, which become more extensive ventrolaterally. Dorsally, basal third of S8 marked with whitish blue, not connected dorsally. Ventrolaterally, a whitish blue marking extends over more than half of S8. S9–10 completely black. Anterior hamuli black, quadrangleshaped and expanded anteriorly. Posterior hamuli dark brown, small, oval, with downwardly directed golden yellow hairs.

Genital ligula ( Figs 2a–c View Figure 2 ). As in the figure of the holotype, illustrations based on the paratype male ZSI. WRC /Ent.4/3062. First segment thicker at its base and thinner at the junction with the second segment. Middle of first segment with long (about the width of the expansion of the third segment) setae (6–10) on each side. Third segment convex, apices with two inwardly curved ridges; apical face tapered, curved downwards and bifurcated into two filaments near the junction of the first and the second segments. Filaments ribbonshaped with the apices of their anterior ends being sharply pointed.

Caudal appendages ( Figs 1j–m View Figure 1 ). Black. Cerci black with brown apices, about three times the length of S10. Cerci with a basal triangular spine at the inner margin, at one quarter of the total length of the cerci. Basal spines of cerci directed backwards and upwards in lateral view. Cerci bifid at apex, outer fork thicker and straighter; inner fork flattened, beak-shaped and slightly shorter than the outer fork. In lateral view, cerci with a small triangular ridge at its outer margin near the base of forking. Paraprocts black with cream-yellow apices, with a small stout spine on the inner side of the base. The basal quarter of the paraproct is thicker, apical halves elliptically curved inwards, touching at the ends. Apices of paraprocts dorsoventrally flattened, spatula-shaped, with a rounded tip.

Measurements (in mm). TL 37.31 ± 0.19, Ab+ CA 31.79 ± 0.27, LFW 19.35 ± 0.06, LHW 18.72 ± 0.06

Variations in males ( Figs 3a–x View Figure 3 , 4a–e View Figure 4 )

Colour of eyes bluish black in mature specimens, green- ish brown in young individuals. Legs yellowish white in young individuals. Variations in total length, length of abdomen including caudal appendages, length of lef fore wing and lef hind wing, number of nodal indices, and presence of cells between the junction of RP1–RP2 and origin of IR 2 in FW and HW are provided in Table 1. The size of the medial black spot on the anterior lobe of the prothorax varies; of the 11 males (including the holotype), two males were lacking a medial black spot (young individuals) ( Fig. 3 View Figure 3 ). In young individuals, the medial spot on the posterior lobe of the prothorax was pale brown, in mature ones dark brown to black. The blue markings on the 8 th abdominal segment are also variable; in some individuals (2 males including the holotype) the marking is well separated, in some individuals (6 males) it is separated only by a thin narrow black line on the dorsum, and in some individuals (3 males) blue markings are dorsally connected, mainly in young males ( Fig. 3 View Figure 3 ). Markings on the ventral side of the thorax vary, with mature individuals having faint brown stripes posteriorly while young individuals are without any stripes ( Fig. 3 View Figure 3 ). One male was photographed with a white “coating” on its dorsum of the head, prothorax, and synthorax, resembling pruinescence but more likely being of external origin ( Figs 4d, e View Figure 4 ).

Female: Unknown

Differential diagnosis

Our comparison of the new species with all other Protosticta species of the Western Ghats is predominantly based on recently published descriptions and the keys in Joshi et al. (2020), Sadasivan et al. (2022), and Vijayakumaran et al. (2022).

The new species is distinguished from P. antelopoides , P. francyi , and P. ponmudiensis (in these species, the posterior lobe of the prothorax is furnished with a pair of spines, the base of the paraproct is without any basal tooth, and paraprocts are bifid at apices) by having a simple posterior lobe of the prothorax and lacking spines, base of paraproct with a basal tooth, and paraprocts are not bifid.

Protosticta gravelyi and P. mortoni are larger in size (Ab+Ca> 42 mm), with the deeply incised apical forks of cerci measuring more than one third of the total length of cerci. Protosticta armageddonia is relatively small (Ab+Ca = 29.5–33 mm) and has a shallowly incised apical fork of its cerci. The prothorax of P. gravelyi is creamy white with a hexagonal black spot covering the centre of the posterior lobe to the middle of the middle lobe. In P. mortoni , the prothorax is pale blue with a black posterior lobe. The prothorax of P. armageddonia is brownish with a dark brown to black mid-posterior lobe instead.

Protosticta davenporti and P. rufostigma can be distinguished by their larger sizes (Ab+Ca> 43 mm), and have a pale yellow anterior and middle lobe of the prothorax, paraprocts without a basal spine or tooth.

Protosticta sholai is a recently described species of large size (Ab+Ca = 42 mm), bright blue postclypeus, and an expanded posterior border of the prothorax, S9 laterally marked with yellow at the anterior border, expanding over more than two thirds of the segment. Apices of paraprocts clubbed. In P. armageddonia , the postclypeus is glossy black, the posterior border of the prothorax is not expanded, S9 is completely black, and the apices of the paraprocts are rounded, not clubbed.

Protosticta monticola occurs at altitudes of> 1,600 m a.s.l., is comparatively larger (Ab+Ca = 33–35 mm, FW = 23–24 mm, HW = 21–22 mm), has a creamy yellow anteclypeus, S1 and S2 bright yellow laterally and ven- trally, pale yellow femur, S8 dorsally black, ventrolaterally marked with yellow, extending to the distal end of the segment and by these character states differentiate it from the new species. In P. monticola the inner fork of cerci is wider compare to the inner fork of P. armageddonia .

Protosticta armageddonia can easily be differenti- ated from P. sanguinostigma by the absence of a long basal spine on the cerci, the outer fork of cerci not being bilobate, and the dark brown pterostigma (cerci with long basal spine, bilobed outer fork of cerci, and red pterostigma in P. sanguinostigma ).

Protosticta myristicaensis is a recently described and the smallest Indian Protosticta (Ab+Ca <20 mm), has bright blue postclypeus, a purple prothorax, a deeply incised apical fork of cerci over more than one third of the total length of cerci, and bears a small tubercle at the base of the apical fork of cerci and can therefore be easily distinguished from P. armageddonia (glossy black postclypeus, brownish to dark brown prothorax, shallowly incised apical fork, and no such tubercle).

Protosticta hearseyi is also small sized (Ab+Ca <30 mm), has a blue prothorax, a very short inner fork of cerci, and the outer fork is not expanded.

Protosticta armageddonia most closely resembles P. cyanofemora and P. anamalaica . However, P. cyanofemora has bright blue eyes, its prothorax is purple and marked extensively with black (prothorax brown with a dark brown to black posterior lobe in P. armageddonia ), ventral side of thorax cream-white with a black ‘Y’-shaped marking, and sternum below the terminal pair of legs entirely black (pale yellowish white without black ‘Y’-shaped marking, and sternum with a vertical black stripe below the terminal pair of legs in P. armageddonia ). The tip of the paraproct is pointed in P. cyanofemora whereas it is rounded in P. armageddonia . In P. cyanofemora the first segment of the genital ligula is without any setae, while each side of the middle of the first segment bears 6–10 long setae.

In the recently described P. anamalaica , the ventral side of the thorax is pale brownish white, with a pair of lateral black strips that almost reach the sternum, and the sternum almost entirely black (in P. armageddonia ventral side of thorax with very faint brown lateral stripes well short of sternum, and the sternum with a black longitudinal stripe. In dorsal view, the basal spines of cerci are directed diagonally inwards in P. anamalaica and are not projecting upwards in lateral view (in P. armageddonia , basal spine directed backwards and upwards in dorsal view. In lateral view, P. armageddonia has a small triangular ridge near the base of forking on the outer margin of the cerci (outer margin of cerci without any triangular ridge at the base of forking in P. anamalaica ). Genital ligula of P. anamalaica bear- ing very minute setae near the distal end of the first segment, whereas in P. armageddonia the middle of the first segment bears long setae that are about the width of the third segment in length; the apical ends of the filaments in P. anamalaica are nearly quadrangular, whereas the anterior apical ends of the filaments are sharply pointed in P. armageddonia . In life, the head and thorax in P. anamalaica are brown, whereas the general colouration in P. armageddonia is much darker brown to black.

Habitat & Ecology

The new species was first photographed by R. Chandran on 7 December 2022 at the later type locality. Following our study of these photographic records, sample specimens were captured on 27 December 2022. The species was observed along the Thiruvananthapuram-Ponmudi Road, near Merchiston Estate, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, at an altitude of 900 m a.s.l. where individuals were seen perched on shrubs very close to the ground (about 30 cm above the ground) near a brook, in the shade of an evergreen canopy ( Figs 4 View Figure 4 , 5 View Figure 5 ) Other odonate species observed in the same habitat were Esme mudiensis Fraser, 1931 , Protosticta gravelyi , P. ponmudiensis , and Hylaeothemis apicalis Fraser, 1924 . During our sub- sequent visits, we recorded the new species at a neigh- bouring site around 500 m away from the type locality (Site 2; 8.7499 N, 77.1284 E, 814 m a.s.l.). Total count data appears to indicates an adult population increase during the dry season (December–March) ( Table 2), un- like in most other Protosticta spp. , which are most pop- ulous during the Southwest Monsoon season (June–Au- gust) in Kerala. Both sites were characterized by a small primary montane stream with a pH-value of 6.72 ± 0.04 (average ± standard deviation) at the site of collection, whereas 7.15 ± 0.14 was recorded at the second site. Both sites were densely vegetated with the overhead canopy cover varying between 83 and 86% ( Figs 5a, b View Figure 5 ).