Table Of ContentOdomtologica34(3):285-289 SeptemberI,2005
SHORTCOMMUNICATIONS
Davidiusmonastyrskii spec. nov.,
anewdragonfly from northernVietnam
(Anisoptera: Gomphidae)
D.M.Cuong
Homthuso16,BuuDien 10210,35Thai Thinh,Hanoi,Vietnam
e-mail:[email protected]
Received October4,20041RevisedandAcceptedFebruary17, 2005
TheS ofthenewsp.isdescribed,illustrated andcomparedwith thecloselyrelated
D.fruhstorferiMartin. Holotype3: Vietnam,BacCanprov.,BaBe,IV-1997;depos-
itedinZoologyCollection,VietnamNational University, Hanoi
INTRODUCTION
DavidiusisanAsian dragonflygenuswithsome20recognized species, distrib-
utedfromthe montane areas in north India and Nepal eastwards to northern
Thailand, Indochinaandto north-easternChina, KoreaandJapan. TheChinese
taxahaverecently beentreatedandrevised by CHAO(1990,1995) andCHAO &
YANG(1995) andtheIndianandNepalese taxa by ASAHINA(1994).
Intheliteraturetwo Davidiusspecies havebeenrecorded fromVietnam:
D. fruhstorferi Martin, 1904, originally describedfrom specimens from
Tonkin(MARTIN, 1904),withfurtherspecimens fromLao CaiandVinhPhu
provinces (ASAHINA, 1996);
— anotherspecies fromLaoCaiprovince, identifiedby ASAHINA(1996) as
“? D. troxNeedham, 1931“on the basis ofdescriptions andfigures by ZHOU
(1986) andCHAO (1990). Subsequently, CHAO (1995) discussedtheconfusion
in thetaxonomyofD.trox(known only fromSichuan), describedthefirst male
ofthatspecies, anddescribedarelatedspecies D. zhouibasedonZHOU’s(1986)
misidentifiedmaterialfromYunnan.Accordingto M.Hamalainen(pers. com.),
theanalappendages oftheLaoChaispecimen figured by ASAHINA(1996) do
not matchexactly the availableillustrationsoftrox, orzhoui. Thusthe identity
286 D.M.Cuong
ofthe Vietnamesetaxon,as wellas thematerialof“trox”from northernThai-
land(cf.HAmAlAINEN, 1998)remainstobestudied.
Recently, Ireceived forstudy amaleDavidiusspecimen, collected inBaBena-
tionalpark by Dr. AlexanderMonastyrskii, who hasbeenworking intheViet-
nam-Russia TropicalCentre in Hanoi.Anothermalewas collectedby mein the
samelocality. Study of these specimens showedthat they do not represent any
knownspecies. Thereforeanewspecies is describedhere.
DAVIDIUS MONASTYRSKII SP. NOV.
Figures 1-7
Material. - Holotype6: Vietnam, BacCanprov.,BaBe, IV-1997, Alexander Monastyrskii
leg.DepositedinZoologyCollection.,Vietnam National University, Hanoi; — Paratype 1S: same
localityasholotype,4-VI-2004,Do ManhCuongleg.Depositedin D.M.CuongCollection.
Figs 1-7.Davidius monastyrskiisp.n.holotype6:(1)head,laterofrontal view;— (2)thoraxandab-
dominal segments1-4,lateralview; — (3)analappendages,lateralview; —(4)analappendages,dor-
solateral view; - (5)anterior hamule;- (6)posteriorhamule;—(7)penis.
Davidius monastyrskiisp.n. 287
Etymology. - Thespeciesisnamed afterDr Alexander L. Monastyrskii,alepidop-
terologistwhofirstcollected thisspecies.
MALE. — Head. — Black with yellow markings (Fig.l). Labiumblack, la-
brumdeepblack mandiblesyellow at base. Anterioroffrons withalarge yel-
,
low marking.
Thorax. — Prothoraxnearly entirely black witha yellow marking onthe
anteriorlobe; synthorax black withextensive greenish-yellow marking extend-
ing frommesepisternum to metepimeron(Fig,2). Legs entirely black. Wingshy-
alinewithlight yellowish-olivetintatbase; forewings with13antenodalsand 11
postnodals; hindwingswith9antenodals, and10postnodals; pterostigmabrown,
slightlyexpanded atthe centreandcoveringabout 3.5-4underlying cells.
Abdomen.— Mostly black withyellow markings as follows; segment 1
withalargelateralspot;segment2withauriclesyellowandalargemarkingpos-
teriorly;segment 3withasmalllateralspot atbase; segment4withatiny lateral
spot atbase(Fig.2); theothersegmentswhollyblack. - Analappendages (Figs
3-4) with superiors dark straw-yellow, stout, conicaland divergent, carrying a
curledprocess ontheventralsurface;inferiorsdeepblackwithatiny lateralspine
atstoutbase, apicalpart curved upward.
Genitalia. — Giansofpeniswithtwoparts, theinnerpartmoredevelopedthan
Figs 8-12. DavidiusfruhstorferiMartin 6[Thailand,ChiangMai, Doi Inthanon,22-V-1996,Coll.
Pinratana]:(8)thorax andabdominal segments1-3,lateral view; —(9)analappendages;— (10)an-
teriorhamule;—(11)posteriorhamule;— (12)penis.
288 DM.Cuong
the outer(Fig.7); anteriorhamuleof spatular shape, deeply bifidandforming
two curled hooks (Fig. 5); posterior hamulebearing a small pointed recurved
spine atapex,anterioredge thickerthanposterior, upperposteriorloberounded
and leaf-like(Fig.6).
Measurements (inmm). —Hindwing21;abdomen 28,
female unknown.
HABITAT. - Tropical forestonlimestoneat lowand middlerangeelevations
(200-700 ma.s.l.).
DISCUSSION
D. monastyrskiisp.n. differsremarkably fromitstwo known Vietnameseconge-
ners, as wellas fromtheotherknownDavidiusspecies, by thepale colourpattern
ofthesynthorax. InD. monastyrskiithebroadlateralmarkingextendsfromthe
lowerthirdofthemesepisternum to themetepimeron, whereasbothD. fruhstor-
feriand Davidiussp. (cf. troxandzhoui) havea distinct ‘7’-shaped marking on
themesepisternum, clearly separated fromtheyellow patches onthesides.
In otherrespects, i.e. inthestructureof theanal appendages, hamuliand pe-
nisD. monastyrskii seems tobeclosetoD.fruhstorferi, butthereare several clear
differences betweenthem:
Anteriorhamulewithstouter curledhooks inD.fruhstorferi, buttheleaf-like
section broaderinD. monastyrskii.
Posteriorlobeofthe posterior hamulebroaderinD.fruhstorferi.
Frontcoxa withits anterior edge yellow in D.fruhstorferi,butentireblack in
D. monastyrskii.
Analappendages pale-yellowinD.fruhstorferi,whereasinD. monastyrskiithe
inferiorappendages are largely deepblack.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Iam gratefultoDrALEXANDERMONASTYRSKIIforpassingmethematerial,to MrAKI-
HIKOSASAMOTOfortheprovisionofliterature,correspondenceandidentification ofmaterial.I
amalso thankfultoMissDANG THANH HOA,whohelpedmetosketch thefiguresofD. monas-
tyrskii andtoDrMATTIHAMALAlNEN,whoreviewed andeditedthefirsttwomanuscriptdrafts
addingsomerelevantinformation,suggestedmanyhelpfulideas and sentaspecimenofD.fruhstor-
ferifromThailand.
REFERENCES
ASHAHINA, S., 1994.Records ofthegomphiddragonfliesrecentlycollectedbyJapaneseentomolo-
gistsfromNepalandDarjeeling,1.Tombo 37(1/4):2-17.
ASHAHINA,S., 1996.RecordsoftheNorthernVietnameseOdonatatakenbytheexpeditionmembers
fromtheNational ScienceMuseum,Tokyo,Bull. Natn. Sci.Mus., Tokyo(A)22(1):21-32.
CHAO, H-f, 1990. ThegomphiddragonfliesofChina (Odonata:Gomphidae).FujianSci,&Technol.
Davidius monastyrskiisp. n. 289
Publ. House,Fuzhou. — [Chin.,with Engl,s.]
CHAO, H-f., 1995.Neworlittleknown gomphiddragonfliesfromChina,1.(Odonata:Goraphidae).
WuyiSci. J. 12:1-47. — [Chin.&Engl.]
CHAO,H-f. &Z. YANG, 1995. Anewspeciesofgomphiddragonflyofthe genus Davidius from
Shaanxiprovince(Odonata:Gomphidae).WuyiSci. J. 12:48-50. —[Chin.&Engl.]
HAMAlAINEN,M., 1998. Additions tothe Thaigomphidfauna. Malangpo15: 133-136,
MARTIN,R. 1904. Liste des NevropteresdeITndo-Chine. Mission PavieIndo-Chine 1879-1895.
Etudes diverses. 3.Recherches surVhistoire naturelle deVlndo-Chine orientate, pp. 204-221,
ErnestLeroux,Paris.
ZHOU, W-b., 1986. Descriptionofthe maleofDavidius troxNeedham, 1931 (Anisoptera;Gora-
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