Revision of the southern African genera Nemopterella Banks and Nemia Navás (Neuroptera: Nemopteridae: Nemopterinae), with descriptions of new genera and species
Author
Abdalla, Ishtiag H.
Author
Mansell, Mervyn W.
Author
Sole, Catherine L.
text
Zootaxa
2019
2019-07-12
4635
1
1
89
journal article
26219
10.11646/zootaxa.4635.1.1
de5c3cc9-9773-4e79-aaaf-0e964d7262f8
1175-5326
3335102
E1AC3BD4-6FCB-49F9-8069-624760C2CAF7
Afroptera cylindrata
Abdalla & Mansell
sp. nov.
(
Figs 50
,
54
,
60
,
83
,
154
)
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:
B76C99C0-B966-4863-995F-D2ACE5F0DAD6
Etymology.
The name of this species is derived from the Latin adjective
cylindrata
(cylindrical) for its markedly slender elongate forewings, which resemble a cylinder in profile.
Type
locality.
SOUTH AFRICA
,
Northern Cape Province
.
Richtersveld National Park
,
Cornell’s Kop
,
28°25’S
16°53’E
.
Diagnosis.
A medium-sized species (
Fig. 54
). General colouration yellow. This species can readily be distinguished from all other
Afroptera
species by the elongate slender forewings (
Figs 54
,
83
).
Description.
Size
(mm). Male: body length 9.3 (8–10.7); forewing 23.6 (20.3–26.4); hind wing 53.4 (45–63.4); antenna 20.8 (18.5–22.8); Female: body length 10.9 (8.5–13.1); forewing 23.4 (22.4–26.3); hind wing 50.2 (44.4– 57.3); antenna 14.8 (12.5–18.7).
Holotype
♂
: body length 9.2, forewing 22.6, hind wing 53.4, antenna 22. (N = 37)
Head
. Frons and clypeus yellow. Vertex brown with pale yellowish hind margin. Palpi dark brown. Antennae brown proximally, dark brown distally, long, almost as long as forewings (
Figs 54
,
83
), with black setae. Apical segment mainly membranous and longer than penultimate segment (
Fig. 60
).
Thorax
. Yellow, pruinose (
Fig. 50
). Pronotum with ill-defined longitudinal mid and lateral stripes. Midstripe appears as central shading at hind margin of pronotum while the lateral stripes form two transverse brown spots posteriorly. Fore and hind margins with erect long black hairs, with smooth long white hairs spread behind fore margin hairs. Long white hairs admixed with long, black hairs cover distal anterior lateral sides of pronotum. Prescutum midstripe appears as faint brown shading centrally. Antero-lateral side of prescutum covered with long, rigid black hairs admixed with a few long white hairs, disc covered in dense long black hairs. Mesoscutum with distinct dark brown lateral stripes, disc covered with long (but not longer than on prescutum), stiff black hairs; pleurites pruinose with two clusters of smooth long hairs on each side of mesoscutum.Area between pre- and mesoscutum dark brown. Mesoscutellum with distinct dark brown longitudinal midstripe. Short white hairs spread over disc. Long white hairs present posterior-laterally. Metanotum with two clusters of long white hairs on each side.
FIGURES 50–53.
Thorax of
Afroptera
spp. 50,
A. cylindrata
sp. nov
; 51,
A. brinkmani
sp. nov
; 52,
A. koranna
sp. nov.
; 53,
A. maraisi
sp. nov
.
Forewings
. Elongate, slender, with acute apex, slightly emarginated before apex (
Figs 54
,
83
). Venation brown.
Costa
whitish, other veins yellowish brown, proximal Cx shaded brown. Proximal costal cells increase in size towards pterostigma. Pterostigma brown, broad basally, long but not reaching C. In
holotype
, 23 Cx present before pterostigma in right wing,
24 in
left. Nine crossveins between R and M before origin of Rs in right wing,
12 in
left. Eleven radial crossveins before pterostigma in right wing,
9 in
left.
Hind wings
brown. Portion just before dark area lighter than proximal portion. Crossveins shaded light brown. Dark area dark brown, shorter than white area.
Legs
yellow with short yellow hairs. Coxae pruinose, with black hairs. Apices of femora tinged dark brown.
Abdomen
. Greyish, pruinose, particularly laterally on tergites and venter. Dorsum dark brown with yellowish hind margin to tergites, with long white hairs. A few long black hairs intermingled with white hairs present on tergites 5–9. Venter with sparse short black hairs. Apex with long black hairs.
Variation
. Some males have white hairs intermixed with black hairs on the thorax. Some males also have a more acute tip to the forewings.
Type material examined.
SOUTH AFRICA
,
Northern Cape Province
.
Holotype
♂
,
NEUR08906
,
Richters- veld,
Cornells Kop
,
28°25’S
16°53’E
, (2816
Bd
),
145m
,
9.x.1974
,
M.W.Mansell
,
H.D.Brown
/ Collected at mercury vapour light, arid rocky terrain
.
Paratypes
:
14♂
7♀
, same data as holotype. (
SANC
)
.
NAMIBIA
,
Karas Region
.
8♂
5♀
NEUR08931
,
Obib Poort
,
28°06’S
16°42’E
,
1.xi.1999
,
M.W.Mansell
,
C.H.Scholtz
, light
;
1♂
1♀
,
NEUR12587
,
Diamond Area
no. 1,
Klinghardtberge
,
27°19’S
15°46’E
, (2715
Bd
), 20 /
21.x.1974
,
M.W.Mansell
,
H.D.Brown
/ Collected at mercury vapour light, arid rocky terrain. (
All
SANC
)
.
FIGURE 54.
Afroptera cylindrata
Abdalla & Mansell
sp. nov.
, habitus. Forewing length = 22.6 mm.
Distribution and habitat.
This species is known from three localities in the
Northern Cape Province
,
South Africa
and southern
Namibia
(
Fig. 154
). The range is mainly centred in the Richtersveld Bioregion of the Succulent Karoo Biome (
Mucina & Rutherford 2006
). (See description of the habitat under distribution of
A. parva
).