Rhyacophila meniscoides Sun, 2016, n. sp.
Creators: name: Sun, Chang-Hai
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2016
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Trichoptera
Rhyacophilidae
Rhyacophila
Rhyacophila meniscoides

description: Rhyacophila meniscoides n. sp.
Figs. 4 A–E
Length of each forewing 6.0 mm. Body (in alcohol) yellowish brown. Head yellowish brown; antennae pale, each flagellum with brown ring; palpi light brown. Thorax yellowish brown dorsally and yellow lateral and ventrally; legs yellowish brown, spurs dark brown; wings yellowish brown. Abdomen dark brown dorsally and pale ventrally.
Male genitalia. Segment IX (IX) with upper portion longer than its lower portion in lateral view (Fig. 4 A), upper margin nearly straight, anterior margin straight, posterior margin sinuate; rectangular in dorsal view (Fig. 4 B), wider than long. Segment X in dorsal view subrectangular (Fig. 4 B), its apex slightly convex; upper portion (u.p.) large, shallowly biconcave dorsomesally and caudally, in lateral view irregular (Fig. 4 A); lower portion (l.p.) vertical, slender, base and subapex produced into pair of small lobes, lower margin shallowly concave in caudal view (Fig. 4 C). Anal sclerites (a.s.) small, button-like, with long roots (r.). Apical band (u.) irregular in lateral view (Figs. 4 A, 4D), nephroid in caudal view (Fig. 4 C), with lateral arms curved. Tergal strap (t.s.) in lateral view triangular (Fig. 4 D), with its base slender and progressively enlarged to distal end. First joint of each inferior appendage trapezoidal in lateral view (Fig. 4 A), dorsal margin about 2/3 as long as ventral margin, distal margin slightly concave; second joint separated into two branches in lateral view (Fig. 4 A): Upper branch (u.b.) clavate with triangular tooth at inner base, lower branch (l.b.) short, trapezoidal. Phallic apparatus complicated: Phallotheca (pht.) rectangular in lateral view (Fig. 4 D), cup-shaped in dorsal view (Fig. 4 E) with posterior margin produced in middle; dorsal process (d.p.) and aedeagus (aed.) tube-like, equal in length but dorsal process thicker than aedeagus; ventral plate (v.p.) of aedeagus trifurcate, middle lobe (m.l.) broad with round apex, pair of lateral lobes (l.l.) pointed and slightly shorter than middle lobe. Single paramere (par.) large, its base membranous, distal half in lateral view triangular with apical fringe of setae.
Diagnosis. The new species is similar to R. flora in male genitalia, but differs from the latter in that (1) the upper portion of segment X in lateral view is shallowly biconcave dorsomesally and caudally (deeply biconcave in R. flora); (2) the dorsal apex of the upper portion of segment X in dorsal view is slightly convex mesally (straight in R. flora); (3) the lower portion of segment X in lateral view has its base and subapex each produced into a pair of lobes (only the subapex is produced into a pair of lobes in R. flora); (4) the upper lobe of the second joint of each inferior appendage has a small triangular tooth (this tooth is obviously larger in R. flora).
Holotype. Male: CHINA: Guang-dong Province, Lian-zhou County, Nan-ling Nature Preserve, Da-dongshan Management Station, Mao-ping stream at unnamed tributary, 1 km upstream of Shuang-shui Power Station, 24.9244°N, 112.7169°E, elev. 695 m, 19 May 2004, collected by John C. MORSE, ZHOU Xin, and Christy J. GERACI.
Etymology. The species name is the Latin word meniscoides, meaning “like a crescent,” in reference to the apical band which is somewhat crescentic in caudal view.
description: Published as part of Sun, Chang-Hai, 2016, Notes on the Rhyacophila scissa species group with description of two new taxa from China (Trichoptera, Rhyacophilidae), pp. 441-452 in Zootaxa 4072 (4) on pages 447-448, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4072.4.3, http://zenodo.org/record/255777