Panorpa brevicornis Hua et Li, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Li, Xue
name: Hua, Baozhen
name: Cai, Lijun
name: Huang, Pengying
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2007
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Mecoptera
Panorpidae
Panorpa
Panorpa brevicornis

description: Panorpa brevicornis Hua et Li, sp. nov.
(Figs. 4, 5, 6, 7 C–D, 8B, 9A–D, 10, 11)
Holotype: male, CHINA: SHAANXI: Double Ribbon Fall (1420m), Liping National Forest Park, Nanzheng, 20.v.2005, 32°48’N, 106°40’E, L.J. Cai.
Paratypes: CHINA: SHAANXI: 1Ψ, same data as holotype; 1ɗ5Ψ, Liping Forest Farm (1420–1500m), 22.v.2005, coll. L.J. Cai; 5ɗ2Ψ, Liping Forest Farm (1420–1500m), 4.vi. & 8.vii.2005, L.J. Cai.
Diagnosis. It is very similar to Panorpa emarginata Cheng, 1949, from Qingling Mountains in appearance and wing coloration, but is distinguishable from the latter by: 1) The anal horn on the sixth tergum very short and stout; 2) The hypovalves of 9th sternum in male short, reaching 3/5 of the basistyle; hypovalve with short setae along the mesal margin; 3) Parameres with dense short stout setae along the dorsal mesal line on its distal half; 4) Dorsal basal plate absent in female genital plate.
Description. Male: Body mostly black. Vertex black, ocellar triangle and frons black. Rostrum reddish brown. Antennal scape reddish brown, pedicel and basal flagellum yellowish brown, remaining part blackish brown, with 39 flagellomeres. Pronotum blackish brown; Meso- and metanotum black; pleural sides pale yellow. Abdominal segments 1–5 black in terga and sterna, milky yellow on pleural sides; segment 6 wholly black; segments 7–9 yellow. The notal organ only a small semicircular projection at posterior margin of 3rd tergum, resting on small sharply raised tip on central part of 4th tergum (Figs. 7 C–D). A single anal horn with base blackish brown and apex yellowish brown at posterior margin of 6th tergum, but very short and very stout. Segment 7 elongated, very narrow at base, but gradually expanded smoothly toward apex. Segment 8 with no obvious constriction (Fig. 8 B). Forewing 14.17 mm long and 3.58 mm wide, membranes transparent, pterostigma prominent, with a vague cloudy apical band. Hindwing 13.33 mm long and 4.2 mm wide, markings similar to forewing.
Male genitalia: The genital bulb moderately long and rounded (Fig. 4). Hypovalves of ninth sternum quite short, only reaching 3/5 of basistyle, widened from mid-length, with short stout setae along mesal margin at distal half, setae shorter than width of hypovalve, approximately 12 in number on each side (Fig. 5 B). Tergum 9 broad subquadrate and narrowed gradually with apex deeply emarginate and bilobed in U-shape (Fig. 5 A). Basistyle long, roughly 2.5 times length of dististyle. Dististyle short and stout with outer margin slightly concave from middle; the basal cup prominent, extending to 1/3 of dististyle. Parameres long, obviously extending over the distal end of basistyle, evenly curved from side view, but the basal half hidden behind basistyle; paramere with a mesal process articulating with penis, and another small subbasal process articulating with basistyle (Fig. 5 C); distal half of paramere with dense short setae on dorsal mesal line (Fig. 5 D). Dorsal valves of penis reaching apex of basistyle; ventral valve short, only extending to 1/2 of dorsal valves; a forked process articulating the penis with basistyle present at mid-length along outer margin of penis, usually hidden by basistyle (Fig. 5 E).
Female: Forewing 14.33 mm long, 4 mm wide; hindwing 13.75 mm, 3.58 mm wide. Wings and colour similar to male.
Female genitalia: Subgenital plate wide at base, gradually narrowed toward apex, some individuals shallowly emarginate at apex (Figs. 6 D–F). Genital plate with prolongation of apical plate wider, acute, and deeply U-shaped emarginated; ventral basal plate folded on ventral part of genital plate, dorsal basal plate lacking; axial portion extending beyond postero-median margin of apical plate, reaching bottom of U-shaped emargination of apical plate; anterior apodemes slender in ventral aspect, divergent (Figs. 6 A–C).
Etymology: The specific name is derived from the Latin, brevi -(short) and cornis (horn), referring to the short anal horn on the sixth abdominal segment.
Distribution: Shaanxi (Micang Mountain and Taibai Mountain), China.
Biology and habitat: This new species completes one generation per year, overwintering as mature larvae in soil cells. The adults occur from mid May to early August. Females deposit eggs in cluster inside soil crevice. Egg duration lasts 6–9 days. Eggs are ovoid, 0.98–1.25 mm long and 0.34–0.55 mm wide, sordid brown, covered with polygonal cell network. After the covering is removed, the chorion can be observed with many polygonal cells (Fig. 11). Larval stages have four instars, lasting 28–50 days before entering diapause in laboratory. The larva is of eruciform type, with prominent compound eyes on pariental region of head; thorax with three pairs of long thoracic legs; abdomen with eight pairs of prolegs on first eight abdominal segments (Figs. 10 B–C). This species also occurs in mountainous regions, preferring moist habitat with many bushes and grasses.
Remarks: The rostrum is reddish brown in most individuals, but yellowish brown in some specimens. Antennal flagellum consists of 37–40 flagellomeres, mostly 39. Forewing length is 13.67–16.67 mm, on average 14.71 mm; width 3.58–4.08 mm, on average 3.88 mm; in males, almost no markings, only the cloudy apical spot prominent. However, the markings in female shows much variation. In some specimens, pterostigmal band is almost complete, only broken at middle; usually only with basal branch, the distal branch is FIGURE 9. A–D, Panorpa brevicornis; E–F, Panorpa byersi. A,B,E, Ψ; C,D,F, ♂.
completely absent or only a small spot left; in most cases, pterostigmal band is lacking, only the vague and cloudy apical band is present; in some individuals, there sre no markings at all. Hindwing length is 12.08– 14.58 mm, on average 13.26 mm; width 3.2–4.08 mm, on average 3.74 mm; similar to forewing in markings.
description: Published as part of Li, Xue, Hua, Baozhen, Cai, Lijun & Huang, Pengying, 2007, Two new species of the genus Panorpa (Mecoptera: Panorpidae) from Shaanxi, China with notes on their biology, pp. 59-67 in Zootaxa 1542 on pages 61-66, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.177900