Afronurus hunanensis NNU
Creators: name: Zhang, Wei
name: Lei, Zhi-Ming
name: Li, Wen-Juan
name: Zhou, Chang-Fa
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2021
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Ephemeroptera
Heptageniidae
Afronurus
Afronurus hunanensis

description: Afronurus hunanensis (Zhang & Cai, 1991)
Figs 4C–D, 6C, 7D–F, 10–11, 12B, 13C–D
Cinygmina hunanensis Zhang & Cai, 1991: 237, figs 1–9 (male, male subimago). Types: male, male subimago, from Hunan, China.
Cinygmina hunanensis – You & Gui 1995: 54, fig. 53 (male). — Zhou & Zheng 2003: 756, figs 11, 15 (male).
Afronurus hunanensis – Braasch & Jacobus 2011: 64.
Material examined
Holotype CHINA • ♂; Hunan Province, Zhang-Jia-Jie city, Jin-Bian creek; 29°20′45.14″ N, 110°32′46.36″ E; alt. 253 m; 18 Jun. 1986; J. Zhang and S.S. She leg.; NNU.
Paratypes CHINA • 9 ♂♂, 3 ♀♀; same collection data as for holotype; NNU.
Additional material
CHINA • 25 ♂♂, 22 ♀♀, 16 nymphs; Hunan Province, Chen-Zhou city, Mang-Shan National Forest Park; 24°58′55.92″ N, 112°51′22.32″ E; alt. 511 m; 7 Aug. 2020; Z.X. Ma leg.; NNU.
Description
Nymph (first description, Figs 7D–F, 10–11)
MEASUREMENTS. Body length 7.0– 8.5 mm, caudal filaments 15.0–17.0 mm long.
COLORATION. Body brown to dark brown.
HEAD. Head capsule ellipsoid, anterior margin unicolor, posterior margin slightly concave and with 4 pale dots in the middle of the compound eyes (Fig. 7D). Labrum ca half width of head, lateral margins expanded slightly; free margin nearly straight, both surfaces with setae but those on dorsal surface relatively longer and denser; ventral surface with shallow median groove, an additional row of bristles on ventral anterior margin (Fig. 10A). Both mandibles covered with numerous long setae on outer margins; prostheca with 5–7 fimbriate bristles (Fig. 10C–D, G–H); outer incisor of left mandible with serrated margin and a large terminal denticle; inner incisor divided into 3 blunt denticles (Fig. 10C, G); outer incisor of right mandible serrated with 2 apical terminal denticles; inner one divided into 2 sharp denticles (Fig. 10D, H). Hypopharynx: apex of superlinguae extended into round lobe-like structures, row of long hair-like setae on lateral margins from base to apex; lingua bell-like, much shorter than superlinguae, apex with tuft of setae (Fig. 10B). Maxillae with fimbriate setae on ventral surface (Figs 4D, 10F), row of 16–18 comb-shaped setae on crown of galea-lacinia, middle combs with 10–13 teeth, distal dentisetae branched, proximal dentisetae bifid and fringed (Fig. 4C); maxillary palpi 3-segmented, basal segment with scattered setae on both outer and inner margins, second segment with long setae on outer margin and terminal segment with setal brush (Fig. 10F). Labium: glossae lobe rounded, inner margins slightly expanded, with tuft of long setae; paraglossae expanded into distinct lobes, with dense setae and bristles on dorsal surface and outer margin; labial palpi 2-segmented, ventral surface and free margin of second segment with setal brush (Fig. 10E).
THORAX. Pronotum slightly extended laterally, subequal in length to head (Fig. 7D). Supracoxal spurs rounded. Femora of all legs with acute and spatulate setae on dorsal surfaces, outer margins with long setae and inner margins with short bristles. Foretibia subequal in length to femur, outer margin with tiny setae at base; foretarsi approximately ⅓ length of tibiae (Fig. 11A). Midleg similar to foreleg, but tibia 0.89× of femur in length, outer margin and dorsal surface with rows of sparse setae (Fig. 11B). Hindleg similar to midleg except tibia 0.7× of femur in length and dorsal surface of tibia with long and short bristles (Fig. 11C–D). Claws of all legs with 4 subapical denticles (Fig. 11E).
ABDOMEN. Abdominal terga I pale or with transverse brown band; terga II–VII brown with pair of pale dots medially, and terga IV–V, VII with adlateral dots; terga VIII–IX pale but with pale thin stripe anteriorly; tergum X brown with 2 small pale longitudinal stripes (Fig. 7E); terga II–VIII with weakly developed posterolateral angles. Gill I banana-shaped, trachea visible (Fig. 11F); gills II–VI heart-like and lamellae expanded laterally (Fig. 11G), gills V–VI with arrowlike accessory lobes (Fig. 11H); gill VII slightly asymmetrical, with fine marginal setae (Fig. 11I). Caudal filaments with whorls of spines on articulations, proximal part pale and other parts yellowish brown (Fig. 7F, as in Fig. 1B).
Male imago
See Zhang & Cai (1991: 237, figs 1–9, original description) and Zhou & Zheng (2003: 756, figs 11, 15).
Egg (Fig. 6C)
Ovoid, small KCTs concentrated at each pole, chorion smooth, large KCTs and oval micropyles located equatorially.
Remarks
The nymphs of A. hunanensis and A. yixingensis can be separated into one group due to the anterior margins of head capsules being without any dot. However, the following characters can help differentiate them: 1) lingua of A. hunanensis is much shorter than superlinguae (Fig. 10B) but in A. yixingensis it is subequal in length (as in Fig. 8B); 2) glossae of A. hunanensis are round (Fig. 10E) while slightly oblong in A. yixingensis (as in Fig. 2F); 3) number of comb-shaped setae on maxillae: 16–18 in A. hunanensis (middle combs with 10–13 teeth) and 12–14 in A. yixingensis (middle combs with 7–10 teeth); 4) gill VII of A. hunanensis is broad (Fig. 11I) but narrow, leaf-like in A. yixingensis (as in Fig. 9F); 5) caudal filaments of A. hunanensis are pale at base and yellowish-brown in other parts (Fig. 7F), whereas caudal filaments of A. yixingensis have dark brown dots on every two or three segments (Fig. 7O).
In male imago, A. hunanensis has plate-like titillators and bifurcated apices of penial lobes (Fig. 13C–D, I–J). In contrast, A. yixingensis has spine-like titillators and a remarkable projection between divergent penial lobes.
Distribution
China (Hunan, Jiangxi, Guizhou).
description: Published as part of Zhang, Wei, Lei, Zhi-Ming, Li, Wen-Juan & Zhou, Chang-Fa, 2021, A contribution to the genus Afronurus Lestage, 1924 in China (Ephemeroptera: Heptageniidae, Ecdyonurinae), pp. 94-116 in European Journal of Taxonomy 767 (1) on pages 106-109, DOI: 10.5852/ejt.2021.767.1491, http://zenodo.org/record/5514875