Two new species of Metaleptobasis from Ecuador are described and illustrated. Metaleptobasis gibbosa (holotype ♂, allotype \female: Ecuador, Pastaza Province, forest wetlands, Los Copales, between Mera and Shell, 01° 29′ 30′′ S, 078° 04′ 19′′ W, elevation 1070 m, 20–22 September 2005, leg. K. J. Tennessen; deposited in Florida State Collection of Arthropods) appears related…
The larva of Epipleoneura manauensis is described and illustrated based on last-stadium larvae and exuviae of reared larvae collected in a black-water stream in Manaus, Amazonas State, Brazil. The larva of Roppaneura beckeri is described and illustrated based on exuviae of reared larvae collected from the water accumulated in the axils (phytotelmata) of Eryngium floribundum…
Among insects, perhaps the most appreciated are those that are esthetically pleasing: few capture the interest of the public as much as vibrantly colored dragonflies and damselflies (Insecta: Odonata). These remarkable insects are also extensively studied. Here, we review the history of odonate systematics, with an emphasis on discrepancies among studies. Over the past century,…
The female of Leptobasis melinogaster González-Soriano, 2002 is formally described and illustrated. Female L. melinogaster can be distinguished from the seven other known congeners by the shape and presence of a ventral lobe below the rounded lateral margins of the posterior and median lobes of the prothorax as well as by the dark apices on…
Calopteryx maculata has become a model system for studying behaviour and reproduction in odonates. Its iridescent coloration is thought to be important in intraspecific interactions but no study has yet measured coloration in a quantitative manner. In a recent study, Fitzstephens & Getty (2000. Animal Behaviour 60: 851-855) showed that lipld levels predict coloration as…
Archaeopodagrion armatum sp. nov. is described and illustrated (holotype ♂ Ecuador, Zamora Chinchipe Prov., forest S of Zamora (4°07′18″S, 78°58′22″W), 02 iv 2008, leg. KJT; in FSCA). The new species is distinct from A. bicorne and A. bilobatum by the pair of highly recurved processes on the hind margin of the prothorax of both sexes,…
In this article the genus Argiolestes s.str. is defined and three new species belonging to this group are described: A. foja sp. nov. (holotype: Foja Mountains, Indonesia, dep. in MBB}); A. muller sp. nov. (holotype: Baia River, Papua New Guinea, dep. in SAMA); A. roon sp. nov. (holotype: Roon Island, Indonesia, dep. in BPBM). New…
Two new species of the New Guinean megapodagrionid genus Argiolestes are described: A. tuberculiferus (holotype ♂ Papua New Guinea, Simbu Province, 6°43′S, 145°05′E; 900 m, 14 xii 2003) and A. verrucatus (holotype ♂ Papua New Guinea, Sandaun Province, 4°48′S, 141°39′E; 1,700-2,100 m, 08 ix 2004). We further provide additional descriptions and ecological data of new…
Aeolagrion philipi sp. nov. is described and illustrated (holotype ♂: Bolivia, Santa Cruz department, Ñuflo de Chávez province, pooled tributary of Río San Julián, 5 km SE of San Ramón, 14 xi 1998, leg. KJT, in FSCA). The new species is closely related to A. inca but is distinct in shape of hind margin of…
During the course of a population genetic study of Trithemis stictica that included sites in Namibia, Kenya, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Botswana and Zambia, two undescribed libellulid species were discovered in the Okavango and Upper Zambezi Floodplains. These were both previously identified as T. stictica. We describe the two species, T. morrisoni sp. nov. (holotype ♂: Namibia,…