Chlorogomphus (Orogomphus) auripennis Zhang & Cai, 2014, spec. nov.
Creators: name: Zhang, Hao-Miao
name: Cai, Qing-Hua
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2014
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Odonata
Cordulegastridae
Chlorogomphus
Chlorogomphus auripennis

description: Chlorogomphus (Orogomphus) auripennis spec. nov.
Figures 1–11, 15–16
Material examined. Holotype male, Mt Nankunshan (23°38’N, 113°51’E), altitude 490 m, Longmen County, Guangdong Province, China, Haomiao Zhang leg., 20. V. 2008; Paratypes: 2♂ 2♀, same data as holotype. The holotype will be deposited in the Collection of Aquatic Animals, Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China.
Etymology. The name “ auripennis ” derived from Latin means “with golden wings”, to specify the female with golden wings. Wing color is a good character to distinguish the female from other related species from eastern China.
Holotype male. Head. Head fundamentally black with yellow markings (Fig. 5). Eyes in living individual green (Figs. 1, 15–16). Labium pale brownish yellow. Labrum entirely black. Anteclypeus black with pale brown ‘I’ shaped mark centrally, postclypeus yellowish with central black spot and pair of black rounded spots beside it. Frons protruded frontally, ridge of antefrons with one pair of yellow bands, separated in middle. Vertex and occiput black.
Thorax. Prothorax largely black with lateral edge yellow, hind lobe with pair of yellow spots dorsally. Synthorax black with yellow markings as follows (Figs. 1, 4, 15, 16): antehumeral stripe slightly expanded toward dorsal apex; humeral stripe about 3 times as broad as antehumeral, metepisternum with broad stripe, metepimeron with small spot near upper corner, lower edge of metepimeron yellow. Legs black except for coxae with yellow stripes.
Wings. Wings almost hyaline, bases slightly tinted with amber brown and tips slightly darkened (Fig. 1). Median space with 2 crossveins in all wings. Triangles 3- or 4-celled. Cubital space with 9 crossveins in fore wings and 8 crossveins in hind wings. Anal loop 19- or 20-celled. Nodal index: 21–31: 29–19 / 24–22: 22–22. Pterostigma black, 4 mm in fore wings and 5 mm in hind wings, covering 4–5 cells.
Abdomen. Abdomen black with yellow markings as follows (Figs 1, 4): lateral side of S1 with posterior spots; dorsum of S2 with paired middle and posterior spots, side of S2 with rounded spot, large and covering whole auricle, lower edge of S2 with broad stripe; dorsum of S3 with paired posterior spots, side of S3 with linear middle stripe, lower edge of S3 with stripe tapering toward end; dorsum of S4–6 with paired posterior spots, S7–10 entirely black.
Anal appendages black, superior appendages same length as S10, curved inwards, with stout ventral spine at basal 2/3, forming a fork in dorsal view (Fig. 6), and another ventral spine at apex, slimmer than the former (Fig. 7). Ventral surface with long and dense setae. Epiproct shorter than cerci, bifurcated from base, slightly curved inwards, with small dorso-apical protuberance.
Paratype female (golden wing morph). Head (Fig. 9) and thorax similar to male (Fig. 8), but eyes in living individual dark green, and paired yellow bands on antefrons narrower than in male (Fig. 2).
Wings. Wings tinted with amber brown and large golden markings (Fig. 2). Golden band in fore wings most darkened in cells between Costa and MA, from wing base to 7th postnodal crossvein. In hind wings golden semicircular band covering most of wing base, reaching 10th postnodal crossvein. Median space with 2 crossveins in all wings. Triangles 4- or 5-celled. Cubital space with 10 crossveins in fore wings and 9 or 10 crossveins in hind wings. Anal loop 24- or 27-celled. Nodal index: 22–29: 30–20 / 24–23: 24–24. Pterostigma black, 6.0 mm in fore wings and 6.5 mm in hind wings, covering 6 cells.
Abdomen. Abdomen expanded basally and apically, narrow in S3–7, largely black with yellow markings as follows (Figs 2, 8): side of S1 with linear posterior stripe; dorsum of S2 with paired linear stripes, lateral side with very fine linear middle stripe; lower edge of S1–8 with linear stripes, broadest at S2–4, S9–10 black. Cerci short, about half length of S10. Vulvar lamina shown in Figs. 10–11.
Female (amber brown wing morph). The general color pattern is almost identical to that of the golden wing morph female except the wings.
Wings. Wings tinted with amber brown overall, with dark brown oblique bands beyond the nodals. Median space with 2 or 3 crossveins. Triangles 4- or 5-celled. Cubital space with 10 or 11 crossveins in fore wings and 10 or 11 crossveins in hind wings. Anal loop 27-celled. Nodal index: 18–31: 31–19 / 22–22: 24–21. Pterostigma brown, 6.0 mm in fore wings and 6.5 mm in hind wings, covering 5 or 6 cells.
Measurements (mm). Holotype male: total length 80.0, abdomen (including anal appendages) 60.5, hind wing 53.0. Paratype males: total length 78.5–80.0, abdomen (including anal appendages) 59.5–60.5, hind wing 52.5–53.0; Paratype female (golden wing morph): total length 80.5, abdomen (including anal appendages) 61.0, hind wing 58.0; Paratype female (amber brown wing morph): total length 74.5, abdomen (including anal appendages) 56.0, hind wing 55.0.
Distribution. China (Nakunshan Mountains and Nanling Mountains, Guangdong Province).
Notes on biology. This beautiful species inhabits very narrow montane streams and seepages. It is a strong flyer and usually seen flying very high in the valley to forage (observed from field work from 2008–2012). Males are wanderers and can travel for miles during the day time. Usually they fly over 5 m above ground at a rather slow speed in the valleys in the Nankunshan Mountains. Only a few individuals were seen to approach water, when they patrolled along the seepages about 2 m above water, but this patrol only lasted a few minutes and was seen only between 09:30 and 11:00h in May. Also a few males were seen to travel along the montane dirt paths. The emergence starts from the beginning of April, but fully matures can be seen only from the beginning of May, indicating they spend a long period for maturation. A female was observed in Babaoshan substation of Nanling National Nature Reserve in June 2010 at about 1000 m, higher than Nankunshan Mountains where the largest population was seen.
Only a few specimens were collected, and most individuals were encountered flying very high and out of reach. The female of the golden wing morph is dominant, the amber brown wing morph female very rare.
description: Published as part of Zhang, Hao-Miao & Cai, Qing-Hua, 2014, Description of Chlorogomphus auripennis spec. nov. from Guangdong Province, with new records of Chlorogomphidae from Yunnan Province, China (Odonata: Chlorogomphidae), pp. 477-486 in Zootaxa 3790 (3) on pages 477-481, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3790.3.6, http://zenodo.org/record/227921