Table Of ContentInternationalJournalofOdonatology
Vol.15,No.3,September2012,223–228
Platycnemis doi sp. nov. from Huu Lien nature reserve in
northernVietnam (Odonata: Platycnemididae)
MattiHämäläinen*
NetherlandsCentreforBiodiversityNaturalis,P.O.Box9517,2300RA,Leiden,TheNetherlands
(Received10April2012;finalversionreceived1June2012)
Platycnemisdoisp.nov.(holotype♂Vietnam,LangSonprovince,HuuLiennaturereserve,TanLai,Hang
Chau,altitude200mabovesealevel,22June2010,depositedinRMNH,Leiden),isdescribedonthebasis
ofaseriesofmalespecimens.Apreliminarydescriptionofthefemalebasedonaphotographtakeninthe
fieldisincluded.Theaffinitiesofthenewspeciesarediscussed.
Keywords: Odonata;Platycnemididae;Platycnemis;newspecies;Vietnam;HuuLien
Introduction
InJune2008,May2009andJune2010,togetherwithmyVietnamesecolleagueDoManhCuong
and his junior co-workers, I made three separate field trips to Huu Lien nature reserve located
withinalimestonemountainareainLangSonprovinceinnorthernVietnam.Themainobjective
oftheseexpeditionswastofindtheenigmatic,largecalopterygid‘Echo’maximaMartin,1904,so
farknownonlyfromasinglefemalespecimencollectedin1901(Martin,1904).Thetypelocality
of this species and of another rare member of that family, Atrocalopteryx atrocyana (Fraser,
1935),isDongMo(ThanMoi),whichislocatedc.20kmeastfromHuuLien.TheDongMoarea
lostitsforestsdecadesagoandthestreamsarebadlypolluted.InHuuLienafewgoodforested
patcheswithunpollutedstreamsstillremain,althoughthisareaalsosuffersfromsmall-scaleillicit
loggingbytheresidenthumanpopulation,despiteitsprotectedstatus.Althoughourattemptsto
find‘E.’maximaatHuuLienwerenotsuccessful,wedidfindviablepopulationsofA.atrocyana,
aswellasotherinterestingcalopterygoids,suchasVestalariamiao(Wilson&Reels,2001)andan
unidentifiedRhinocyphaspecies,evidentlyclosetoRhinocyphahuai(Zhou&Zhou,2006).We
alsorecordedatHuuLienseveralotherneworrarespecies:NihonogomphusschorriDo&Karube,
2011(Do&Karube,2011),Sieboldiusgigas(Martin,1904)andanundescribedCoelicciaspecies.
Duringmymostrecentvisitthereon17–22June2010,Ifoundasmallpopulationofanew,rather
inconspicuousplatycnemididspeciesalongasmallshadytrailonthewaytoMoAngwaterfalls.
This new species, which exhibits characters unusual within the subfamily Platycnemidinae, is
*Email:matti.hamalainen@helsinki.fi
ISSN1388-7890print/ISSN2159-6719online
©2012WorldwideDragonflyAssociation
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13887890.2012.700503
http://www.tandfonline.com
224 M.Hämäläinen
describedhere.ItisprovisionallyplacedinthegenusPlatycnemis,butitmayeventuallyrequire
anewgenusofitsown.
Platycnemisdoisp.nov.
(Figures1–5)
Specimensexamined
Holotype(cid:2).Vietnam,LangSonprovince,HuuLiennaturereserve,TanLaivillage,atrailbeyond
HangChaustreamonwaytoMoAngwaterfall,alt.c.220m[c.21◦ 39(cid:3) 44(cid:3)(cid:3) N,106◦ 22(cid:3) 18(cid:3)(cid:3) E],
22June2010,M.Hämäläinenleg.DepositedatRMNH(Leiden,theNetherlands).
Paratypes.6(cid:2),samelocalityasholotype,21–22June2010,M.Hämäläinenleg.
Etymology
The species is named in honour of my good friend and colleague Captain Do Manh Cuong, in
recognitionofhissignificantcontributionstoourknowledgeoftheVietnameseodonatefauna.
Diagnosis
A slender platycnemidine with a disproportionally long abdomen; the abdomen is nearly twice
as long as the wings. Middle and hind tibiae slightly widened, white. Unusually among the
Platycnemidinae, the inferior appendages are bifurcate at tip. Glans of genital ligula with long
lateralrecurvedflagella,slightlyclubbedterminally.
Descriptionofmaleholotype(cf.Figures1–4,showingparatypemales)
Head. Labium pale, tips of lateral lobes brown. Labrum pale with the posterior border black
andwithashort,black,triangularindentationinthemiddle,extendingone-thirdofthelengthof
labrum.Anteclypeuslargelypale,postclypeusblack.Facecrossedbyabroad,obscure,palestripe
asinFigure2a.Mostoffronsandheadaboveshiningblackwithafaintmetalliclustre.Tinypale
spotsbesidethelateralocelli.Scape(firstsegment)ofantennaeblack,withitsuppersurfacepale,
pedicel(secondsegment)paleinthelowerhalf,butbrownintheapicalhalf;flagellumbrown.
Figure 1. Platycnemisdoisp.nov.,habitusofmale(aparatype).
Platycnemisdoisp.nov.fromnorthernVietnam 225
Figure 2. Platycnemisdoisp.nov.,male:(a)head,frontalview;(b)thorax,lateralview;(c)legs.InkdrawingsbyDo
ManhCuong.
Figure 3. Platycnemisdoisp.nov.,maleanalappendages:(a)dorsalview;(b)obliquelateralview.Scanningelectron
micrographsbyDirkGassmann.
Figure 4. Platycnemisdoisp.nov.,glansofgenitalligula:(a)ventralview;(b)lateralview;(c)tipoflateralflagellum.
ScanningelectronmicrographsbyDirkGassmann.
226 M.Hämäläinen
Figure 5. Platycnemisdoisp.nov.,femalespecimenphotographedinnatureon21June2010.
Thorax. ProthoraxmattblackwithpalegreenishmarkingsasinFigure2b.Synthoraxbronzy-
blackwithintricate,paleyellowishmarkingslaterallyasinFigure2b.Metepisternumwithonly
smallpalemarksanteriorly.Venterofsynthoraxblackwiththeapicalpartpaler.Legswithcoxae
mainlyblack;withyellowapicalpatchinforelegandwithyellowbordersinmidandhindlegs.
Inforelegstrochanterspale,femoragreyishbrown,excepttheupperhalfoftheanteriorsidepale;
tibiaegreyishbrown.Middleandhindlegswithfemorablack,withanarrowpaleringnearthe
base.Middleandhindtibiaemoderatelyflattenedanddilated,whitewithblacksetae(Figure2c).
Wings. Hyaline. Pterostigma a greyish brown trapezium, the costal side shorter than the anal
side.ArculusslightlydistaltoAx2.Quadrangleanelongaterectangle.
Abdomen. Proportionally slender (Figure 1). Black with pale markings as follows. S1 with a
pale greenish half ring dorsally near the apex, a pale greenish lateral band expanded upwards
and downwards near the apex of the segment. S2 with pale greenish markings as follows: a
tinydotmid-dorsallyatthebase,anarrow,obscurelateralstripeontheapicalhalf,anobscure
streak on lower edge, not reaching the apex of the segment. S3 with a narrow pale greenish
dorsal half ring near the base, the colour extending slightly apically at the mid-dorsal line; an
obscurepalemarkingonthelowersidenearthebase.S3–6withdistinct,paleyellowish,complete,
subapicalrings;theringsextendaroundtheentiresegment,butdorsallyarepartlyobscuredby
theintrusionofpalebrownishcolour;laterallytheringsbecomegraduallylongerinsuccessive
segments; S7–9 black, except for a pale greenish, triangular subapical marking on lower side
ofS7.S10withdorsumbroadlycreamywhite,dorsallythebasalbordernarrowlyblack,theblack
colourextendingtowardsapexventrolaterally.SeenlaterallytheapicalridgeofS10blackinthe
lowerhalfofthesegment.
Analappendagescreamywhitish,inferiorsventrallydarkenedatbase.Theextremetipsofinfe-
riorsblack.AppendagesshapedasinFigures3a,b.Superiorsdistinctlyshorterthaninferiors.Tips
ofinferiorsdistinctlybifurcate,theupperbranchsomewhatsmallerandnarrowerthanthelower.
Genital ligula (not examined in holotype, but in a paratype, cf. Figures 4a–c). Glans bearing
twolong,lateral,recurvedflagella.Tipofflagellumexpandedtoformapeculiarlyscoopedclub,
bearing numerous tiny backward-pointing spines (Figure 4c). Such spines are also present in
groupsoftwotofouralongthedistalpartoftheflagellum.Terminallobeofglansrecurvedand
producedtoformtwonarrowandlongflagella,appressedtotheshaftandnotbearingprominent
smallspines.
Platycnemisdoisp.nov.fromnorthernVietnam 227
Measurements(mm). Totallength39,forewing19,hindwing18,abdomen33.Abdomen/hind
wingratio1.83.
Variationinmaleparatypes
Therearenoobviousdifferencesinthecolourpattern,butthereissomevariationinsizeandin
therelativelengthofabdomenandwings.
Measurements (mm). Hind wing 16.5–19.0, abdomen 30.0–34.5. Abdomen/hind wing ratio
1.71–1.91.
Preliminarydescriptivenotesonthefemale,basedonaphotograph
A single female specimen was observed at the same site as the males. It was photographed
(Figure 5), but unfortunately was not captured. The eyes were green with darker longitudinal
stripes.Thecolourpatternofthethorax,withpalegreenishmarkings,resembledthatofthemale.
ThesubapicalpaleringsonS3–7werepalebluish,andunlikethemaletheringonS7iscomplete.
Segment10andcercipale.
Habitatandnotesonbiology
Thepopulationwasobservedinshadyevergreenforestalongatrailascendingalowlimestone
hill,c.20–30mfroma1to2mwidestreamwithamoderatelyfastcurrent.Thespecimenswere
seen only in heavily shaded places along a short 10 to 15m long section of the trail and in its
immediatevicinity.Theywereinconspicuousandperchedonvegetationclosetotheground.When
disturbed they flew weakly for a few metres. Other damselfly species observed along the same
trailincludedCoperamarginipes(Rambur,1842),Coperaciliata(Selys,1863),anundescribed
Coelicciaspecies,Vestalisgracilis(Rambur,1842),Rhinocyphasp.(cf.huai)andAtrocalopteryx
atrocyana.
Discussion
ThefamilyPlatycnemididaeispresentlydividedintotwosubfamilies:PlatycnemidinaeandCal-
icnemidinae, based on the grouping by Fraser (1957). Four genus-group names are available
in the first subfamily: Platycnemis Burmeister, 1839 (type species Libellula pennipes Pallas,
1771), Copera Kirby, 1890 (a replacement name for the preoccupied name Psilocnemis Selys,
1863;typespeciesPlatycnemismarginipesRambur,1842),ProplatycnemisKennedy,1920(type
speciesPlatycnemishovaMartin,1908),PseudocoperaFraser,1922[typespeciesPseudocopera
arachnoides Fraser, 1922; a taxon synonymized with Copera ciliata (Selys, 1863) byAsahina,
1984]. Proplatycnemis and Pseudocopera are currently regarded as synonyms of Platycnemis
andCopera,respectively.However,thegenerictaxonomyofthesubfamilyPlatycnemidinaestill
remainsunsettled.ThemostrecentcontributiononthismatterwasDijkstraetal.(2007),reviewing
theAfrotropicalspeciesofPlatycnemidinae.
CurrentlyDAWN(DamselflyWorkersatNaturalis)–aresearchgroupattheNetherlandsCentre
for Biodiversity Naturalis in Leiden, is conducting a study of the phylogenetic affinities of the
platycnemidinedamselflies,basedonmoleculardata.Thisstudywillmostprobablyresultina
newgenericclassificationwithinthesubfamily.AmalespecimenofPlatycnemisdoihasalready
beenanalysedinthisstudy.
228 M.Hämäläinen
In order to assign a formal name to this new species, it is here provisionally placed in the
genus Platycnemis, because the structure of the glans of the genital ligula, with both terminal
andlateralflagella,resemblesmostcloselythatofaPlatycnemisspecies(especiallythosefrom
Madagascar);inCoperaspeciesthelateralflagellaaremissing.Lateralflagellaarealsopresent
intheOrientalPlatycnemisphasmovolansHämäläinen,2003(cf.scanningelectronmicrographs
inHämäläinen,2003).Thenewspeciesalsohasauniquecharacter,thebifurcatetipofthemale
inferiorappendage,whichdoesnotexistinanyotherknownPlatycnemisorCoperaspecies,and
tendstosuggestasignificantdivergencefromknownrelatedtaxa.
Acknowledgements
IamgratefultoDoManhCuong,K-D.Dijkstra,DirkGassmann,SamiKarjalainen,AlbertOrrandAkihikoSasamoto
forprovidinghelporrelevantinformationduringdifferentphasesofthisstudy.
References
Asahina,S.(1984).‘Coperaannulata(Selys)’composedoftwodifferentspecies!ChôChô,7(7),2–10.
Dijkstra,K.–D.B.,Clausnitzer,V.&Martens,A.(2007).TropicalAfricanPlatycnemisdamselflies(Odonata:Platyc-
nemididae)andthebiogeographicalsignificanceofanewspeciesfromPembaIsland,Tanzania.Systematicsand
Biodiversity,5,187–198.
Do,M.C.&Karube,H.(2011).Nihonogomphusschorrisp.nov.fromHuuLienNatureReserve,LangSonProvince,
Vietnam(Odonata:Gomphidae).Zootaxa,2831,63–68.
Fraser,F.C.(1957).AreclassificationoftheOrderOdonata.Sydney:RoyalZoologicalSocietyofNewSouthWales.
Hämäläinen,M.(2003).Platycnemisphasmovolanssp.nov.–anextraordinarydamselflyfromLaoswithnotesonits
EastAsiancongeners(Odonata:Platycnemididae).Tombo–ActaOdonatologicaJaponica,46,1–7.
Martin,R.(1904).ListedesNévroptèresdel’Indo-Chine.In:MissionPavieIndo-Chine1879–1895.Étudesdiverses.III.
Recherchessurl’histoirenaturelledel’Indo-Chineorientale(pp.204–221).Paris:ErnestLeroux.
