Afroptera bitis Abdalla & Mansell & Sole 2019, comb. nov.
Creators: name: Abdalla, Ishtiag H.
name: Mansell, Mervyn W.
name: Sole, Catherine L.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2019
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Neuroptera
Nemopteridae
Afroptera
Afroptera bitis

description: Afroptera bitis (Tjeder, 1967) comb. nov.
(Figs 64, 89, 104, 146, 152)
Synonymy
Nemopterella bitis Tjeder, 1967: 465.
Etymology. From the town of Pofadder (type locality) that was named after a well known and widespread African snake, Bitis arietans, whose common Afrikaans name is “Pofadder” or “puff adder” in English.
Type locality. SOUTH AFRICA, Northern Cape Province. Pofadder, 29°07’S 19°23’E.
Type depository. ZILS.
Diagnosis. Adults of A. bitis resemble those of A. dyscrita in their large body size and broad forewings (Fig. 89), but A. bitis can easily be distinguished from A. dyscrita by a combination of the following characters: A. bitis has dense white hairs over the whole thorax (Fig. 104) while in A. dyscrita the prescutum is covered in stiff black hairs (Fig. 102). Moreover, A. bitis has long antennae that reach the pterostigma (Fig. 89) while in A. dyscrita they do not (Fig. 129).
Size (mm). Male: body length 9.8 (8–11.7); forewing 23.6 (18.7–27.0); hind wing 55.7 (41.1–64.8); antenna 21.7 (17–25.5); Female: body length 11.2 (9.3–13.7); forewing 22.7 (19.2–26.3); hind wing 49.4 (42–55.6); antenna 15.2 (12.3–18.2). (N = 319).
Type material examined. SOUTH AFRICA, Northern Cape Province. Holotype ♂ (Fig. 89) labelled: Cape Prov, Pofadder, 9.XI.1950, P.Brinck, G.Rudebeck, På lijus [on light] / Holotypus ♂ Nemopterella bitis Tjed, Bo Tjeder 1966 ’ (red printed label) / MZLU Type no. 3845:1 (ZILS). Paratypes: 4♀, TMSA02062, Paratype Neu 094, Nemopterella bitis Tjeder (yellow printed label) / Pofadder [29°07’34’’S 19°23’44’’E], 17.x.1954, A.J.T.Janse (white printed label) / Paratypus, Nemopterella bitis Tjed, Bo Tjeder, 1966 (red handwritten label). (TMSA).
Other material examined. SOUTH AFRICA, Northern Cape Province. 2♂, TMSA00729, Richtersveld, 7 km SW Claim Peak, 28°26’S 17°10’E, 23.ix.1991, M.Krüger / Nemopterella bitis Tjeder, 1967, Det. M.W.Mansell 2013; 1♂ 1♀, TMSA00753, Pofadder [29°07’34’’S 19°23’44’’E], 17.x.1954, A.J.T.Janse / Nemopterella bitis Tjed- er, 1967, Det. M.W.Mansell 2013; 1♂ 1♀, TMSA00758, Kenhardt 6 km W [29°20’57’’S 21°09’03’’E], 12.x.54, A.J.T.Janse. (All TMSA). 9♂, NEUR09772 and 16♀, NEUR09783, Kabas Farm, 10 km NE Pofadder, 29°02’S 19°26’E, 800m, 1.xi.1986, M.W.Mansell; 143♂ 47♀, NEUR08925, Richtersveld, Die Koei, 28°17’S 16°59’E, 400m, 1–6.x.1991, M.W.Mansell, R.G.Oberprieler / Collected at light; 50♂ 33♀, NEUR08927, Richtersveld, De Hoop turnoff, 3 km E Die Koei, 28°17’S 17°02’E, 450m, 6.x.1991, M.W.Mansell / Collected at light; 1♀, NEUR08928, Richtersveld, Hakkiesdoringhoek, 28°25’S 17°11’E, 500m, 2.x.1991, M.W.Mansell, R.G.Oberprieler. NAMIBIA, Karas Region. 7♂ 2♀, NEUR10209, ‘ Boom River Canyon 4 km N Orange (ESE of Rosh Pinah), 28°00’S 17°03’E, 200m, 25.x.1996, E.Holm, at gas light.
Distribution and habitat. Afroptera bitis is endemic to the Northern Cape Province, South Africa, from localities mainly centred in the Richtersveld and Bushmanland Bioregions (Fig. 152). The Bioregions fall mainly within the Succulent and Nama Karoo Biomes. The habitats vary from arid mountainous desert with a succulent vegetation type and winter rains in the Richtersveld Bioregion to arid habitats dominated by shrubs and grass, characterized by late summer rains in Bushmanland (Mucina & Rutherford 2006).
description: Published as part of Abdalla, Ishtiag H., Mansell, Mervyn W. & Sole, Catherine L., 2019, Revision of the southern African genera Nemopterella Banks and Nemia Navás (Neuroptera: Nemopteridae: Nemopterinae), with descriptions of new genera and species, pp. 1-89 in Zootaxa 4635 (1) on pages 36-37, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4635.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/3335102