Vestalis submontana

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Vestalis submontana
Vestalis apicalis submontana.jpg
Male
Vestalis submontana-Silent Valley-2016-08-14-001.jpg
Female
Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Odonata
Suborder: Zygoptera
Family: Calopterygidae
Genus: Vestalis
Species:
V. submontana
Binomial name
Vestalis submontana
Fraser, 1934
Synonyms
  • Vestalis gracilis montanaFraser, 1934
  • Vestalis apicalis submontanaFraser, 1934

Vestalis submontana [2] [3] is a species of damselfly belonging to the family Calopterygidae. It is principally found in the Western Ghats of India, [4] [5] with some records further east. [1]

Contents

Frederic Charles Fraser described two new subspecies Vestalis gracilis amaena and Vestalis apicalis amaena in 1929 [6] and later gave replacement names Vestalis gracilis montana and Vestalis apicalis submontana in 1934. The type specimens were from Nilgiri mountains in Western Ghats of South India. [7] [4]

Matti Hämäläinen [8] studied the type specimens of these taxa and other material preserved in collections of BMNH (London), IRSN (Brussels) and RMNH (Leiden) in 2011. He concluded that there is striking structural and colour differences which indicate that submontana is a distinct species. And its sympatric occurrence with V. apicalis and V. gracilis alone rules out its former subspecies status. So V. a. submontana is now considered as a separate species Vestalis submontana Fraser 1934 and Vestalis gracilis montana Fraser, 1934 a synonym of it. [4]

Description and habitat

It is similar to Vestalis apicalis and Vestalis gracilis ; but the face is black and the black apex of wings much restricted, occupying only about 2·5 mm. It is not sharply defined in young males and in females. The body color is dull golden-bronzed metallic green. It is a bit smaller than the other two species. [7] [4] The structure of the male appendages is also different. The inferior appendages are proportionally longer than the other two species. [4]

It is found in the upland forest streams in South India. [7] [4]

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Vestalis</i> Genus of insects

Vestalis is a genus of damselflies belonging to the family Calopterygidae.

<i>Vestalis gracilis</i> Species of damselfly

Vestalis gracilis, is a species of damselfly belonging to the family Calopterygidae. It is known commonly as the clear-winged forest glory or clear-winged flash-wing. It is native to Southeast Asia and surrounding regions.

<i>Vestalis apicalis</i> Species of damselfly

Vestalis apicalis, or the black-tipped forest glory, is a species of damselfly belonging to the family Calopterygidae. It is found in India and Sri Lanka.

<i>Neurobasis chinensis</i> Species of damselfly

Neurobasis chinensis, stream glory is a species of damselfly in the family Calopterygidae. It is a common species distributed across much of Asia.

<i>Indolestes gracilis</i> Species of damselfly

Indolestes gracilis is a species of damselfly in the family Lestidae. It is known only from Sri Lanka, South India and Cambodia.

<i>Burmagomphus laidlawi</i> Species of dragonfly

Burmagomphus laidlawi is a species of dragonfly in the family Gomphidae. It is known only from the high altitude regions of Western Ghats of India.

<i>Microgomphus souteri</i> Species of dragonfly

Microgomphus souteri is a species of small dragonfly in the family Gomphidae. It is endemic to the forest streams of Western Ghats of India.

<i>Hylaeothemis apicalis</i> Species of dragonfly

Hylaeothemis apicalis or the Blue Hawklet is a species of dragonfly in the family Libellulidae, endemic to India.

<i>Aciagrion approximans</i> Species of damselfly

Aciagrion approximans, Indian violet dartlet, is a species of damselfly in the family Coenagrionidae. It is found in east and south of India. The range extends to Thailand, China and Cambodia.

<i>Ceriagrion olivaceum</i> Species of damselfly

Ceriagrion olivaceum is a species of damselfly in the family Coenagrionidae. it is commonly known as rusty marsh dart. This species can be found in south and southeast Asia.

<i>Mortonagrion varralli</i> Species of damselfly

Mortonagrion varralli, the brown dartlet, is a species of damselfly in the family Coenagrionidae, endemic to India. The insect is named after Frederic Charles Fraser's wife, Ethel Grace Fraser (1881-1960), a constant companion of his collecting trips in India.

<i>Dysphaea ethela</i> Species of damselfly

Dysphaea ethela, black torrent dart, is a species of damselfly in the family Euphaeidae. The insect is named after Frederic Charles Fraser's wife, Ethel Grace Fraser (1881-1960), a constant companion of his collecting trips in India.

<i>Euphaea cardinalis</i> Species of damselfly

Euphaea cardinalis, Travancore torrent dart, is a species of damselfly in the family Euphaeidae.

<i>Disparoneura apicalis</i> Species of damselfly

Disparoneura apicalis, black-tipped bambootail is a damselfly species in the family Platycnemididae. It is endemic to Western Ghats. It was described from Kodagu, Karnataka, on the upper reaches of the Kaveri River. It is also found to occur in Kuruvadweep, Wayanad, Kerala, along the banks of Kabini River.

<i>Idionyx minimus</i> Species of dragonfly

Idionyx minimus is a species of dragonfly in the family Corduliidae. It is known only from the Western Ghats of Kerala, India.

<i>Idionyx galeatus</i> Species of dragonfly

Idionyx galeatus is a species of dragonfly in the family Synthemistidae. It is known only from the Kodagu district, South Canara, Wayanad and Nilgiris in Western Ghats of India.

<i>Merogomphus tamaracherriensis</i> Species of dragonfly

Merogomphus tamaracherriensis is a species of large dragonfly in the family Gomphidae. It is endemic to the forest streams of Western Ghats of India.

<i>Libellago indica</i> Species of damselfly

Libellago indica, southern heliodor is a species of damselfly in the family Chlorocyphidae. It is found only in South India. It breeds in hill streams and rivers.

References

  1. 1 2 Dow, R.A. (2021). "Vestalis submontana". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2021: e.T139121999A176111432. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T139121999A176111432.en . Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  2. ↑ Dennis Paulson; Martin Schorr; Cyrille Deliry. "World Odonata List". University of Puget Sound . Retrieved 15 Feb 2022.
  3. ↑ M. Hamalainen. "Calopterygoidea of the World" (PDF). caloptera.com. Retrieved 2017-02-20.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 M. Hamalainen. "Notes on the taxonomic status of Vestalis submontana Fraser, 1934 from South India (Zygoptera: Calopterygidae)" (PDF). Notulae Odonatologicae. 7 (8): 69–76. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 February 2017.
  5. ↑ K.A., Subramanian; K.G., Emiliyamma; R., Babu; C., Radhakrishnan; S.S., Talmale (2018). Atlas of Odonata (Insecta) of the Western Ghats, India. Zoological Survey of India. pp. 72–73. ISBN   9788181714954.
  6. ↑ Fraser, F. C. "Indian Dragonflies". The Journal of the Bombay Natural History Society. 33 (2–3): 583–584. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
  7. 1 2 3 Fraser, F.C. (1934). The Fauna of British India, including Ceylon and Burma, Odonata Vol. II. Red Lion Court, Fleet Street, London: Taylor and Francis. pp. 128, 130.
  8. ↑ "Matti Hämäläinen". Naturalis . Retrieved 2017-02-20.

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