A new species of Protosticta Selys, 1885 (Odonata: Zygoptera: Platystictidae) from Western Ghats, Kerala, India

Abstract

A new species of Protosticta Selys, 1885 from Kerala part of Western Ghats is described and illustrated. The holotype male and paratype female is distinguished from other Protosticta species based on its complete black dorsal surface of abdomen, 7th and 8th abdominal segment without yellow or blue color dorsally and its distinct anal appendages. The new species, Protosticta monticola sp. nov. was collected from shola forests of Idukki District, Kerala, southern Western Ghats. A key is also provided for the identification of all described species of Protosticta known from the Western Ghats.

Description ofProtosticta armageddonensis sp. nov. (Odonata: Zygoptera: Platystictidae) from the Western Ghats of India

“…The new species can be separated with the closely allied with P . anamalaica Sadasivan, Nair & Samuel, 2022, P. cyanofemora Joshi, Subramanian, Babu & Kunte, 2020, and P. monticola Emiliyamma & Palot, 2016, by the combination of characters, including the marking on 8th abdominal segment, structure of caudal appendages and genital ligula.…”

“…nov. with the three closely similar Protosticta species recently described from the Western Ghats, namely P . anamalaica Sadasivan, Nair & Samuel, 2022, P. cyanofemora Joshi, Subramanian, Babu & Kunte, 2020, and P. monticola Emiliyamma & Palot, 2016, to provide comprehensive differential diagnosis. The new species is distinguished from its congeners by a combination of characters, including the structure of prothorax, caudal appendages, genital ligula, and markings on the 8th abdominal segment.…”

Some New Records of Odonata (Insecta) fauna from Sikkim Himalaya, India

“…Globally, 5952 species of odonates under 652 genera have been reported, of which 477 species, under 142 genera and 18 families are known from India (Subramanian, 2014;Nair & Subramanian, 2014;Kiran 2015;Emiliyamma & Palot, 2016). According to Mitra (2004), Odonata fauna of Sikkim comprises of 74 species and subspecies, within the present boundaries of the state geographic area.…”

A note on the current distribution of reedtail damselfly Protosticta rufostigma Kimmins, 1958 (Odonata: Zygoptera: Platystictidae) from Western Ghats, and its addition to the odonate checklist of Kerala

“…The genus Protosticta Selys, 1885 consists of zygopterous damselflies of small size and slender built commonly called Reed-tails or Shadow-damsels, inhabiting hill streams of tropical, subtropical and southern montane wet temperate sholas of southern India and forests of south east Asia. In India, they are distributed in the Western Ghats of peninsular India, parts of north-eastern India and Burma (Fraser 1933;Emiliyamma & Palot 2016). The genus has 49 extant species (Schorr & Paulson 2020), distributed from Pakistan, through Indian subcontinent to Indo-China and southeastern Asian Islands ( van Tol 2000).…”

“…These are Protosticta gravelyi Laidlaw, 1915, P. hearseyi Fraser, 1922, P. sanguinostigma Fraser, 1922, P. antelopoides Fraser, 1924, P. mortoni Fraser, 1924, P. davenporti Fraser, 1931, P. rufostigma Kimmins, 1958, P. ponmudiensis Kiran, Kalesh & Kunte, 2015, and P. monticola Emiliyamma & Palot, 2016(Subramanian et al 2018. Other species recorded within Indian limits are P. himalaica Laidlaw, 1917, P. fraseri Kennedy, 1936, and P. damacornu Terzani & Carletti, 1998(Fraser 1933Kennedy 1936;Terzani, & Carletti 1998;Subramanian, 2014;Kiran et al 2015;Emiliyamma & Palot 2016). Of these, all except P. mortoni and P. rufostigma had been recorded from Kerala (Subramanian et al 2018).…”