Coeliccia palawana, M.A. Lieftinck, 1940

M. A. Lieftinck, 1940, Descriptions and records of South-East Asiatic Odonata (II), Treubia 17 (4), pp. 337-392 : 358-359

Coeliccia palawana , sp. n. ( fig. 13 ).

Material studied: — 1 male (ad., holotvpe), Philippine Islands, Palawan Id., Alfonso X III, March 6, 1935. K. Kuwasima leg., in the Leiden Museum .

Male (ad.). — Labium yellow. Face, anterior to the fronto-clypeal suture, entirely Lumiere blue. Postclypeus black. Antennae and frons, as far upwards as the median ocellus, rusty-brown (ferruginous, after Ridgway). Vertex dark blue-green, epicranium Lumiere blue. Rear of the head greyish-blue.

Prothorax with the anterior and posterior lobes ferruginous, middle lobe slightly darker mid-dorsally; propleuron Lumiere blue. Posterior lobe short and very broad, with the hind margin slightly convex, directed obliquely upwards and backwards; lateral angles sharply pronounced, rectangulate, the apices themselves slightly projecting and bluntly pointed in frontal view.

Colour-pattern of synthorax composed merely of rusty-brown and blue tints, whereas the black bands are completely gone. Dorsum with a large ferruginous median band, occupying the inner two-thirds of each episternite; dorsally, this band broadens in a curve that runs parallel to the dorsal margin of the episternite so as to meet the impressed blackish streak at the upper end of the humeral suture, about 0.5 mm below the dorsal margin. Ante-alar triangles rusty-brown. A second band of the same ferruginous colour covers most of the mesinfraepisternite and the lower 6/7 of the mesepimeron; laterally, this band does not reach the spiracle, and dorsally, is cut off obliquely. Lateral third of each mesepisternite, dorsal one-seventh of the mesepimeron, and the whole of the thoracic sides, Lumiere blue. There is, besides, a very narrow rusty-brown line along the second lateral suture. Ventral surfaces pale yellow.

Legs, including the coxae and trochanters, pale yellow. All femora with fine black lines on exterior surfaces, and knees also finely black. Spines and tips of last tarsal joint dark brown.

Wings slightly tinged, neuration dark brown. Three postquadrangular antenodal cells. Ab arises at the level of Ac. Medio-anal link distinctly broken in fore wing, straight in hinder wing. M3 arises slightly distal to the subnodus, Rs well distal to it (about midway between nodus and Px1). Quadrilateral of the hind wing a little longer than that of the fore wing, both slightly widened distally; costal side about two-thirds as long as anal side in fore wing, but almost 7/8 as long in hinder wing, hence proximal and distal sides of hindwing quadrangle but slightly divergent. M 2 in fore wing arises at the 8th, in hindwing at the 7th postnodal; M 1a in fore wing two cells, in hindwing three cells further distad. Nodal index 1817/18.16.Pterostigma short and high, subquadrate, deep black in colour; proximal side equal in length to costal side, which is slightly but distinctly shorter than anal side. Anal side markedly, distal side very slightly convex, distal angles almost 90°. Border of the wing-tips entire.

Abdomen with segm. 1 brownish on dorsum, blue aside; 2 light brown with elongate, rectangular blue patch, occupying the dorsal three-fifths and bordered posteriorly by an ill-defined, transverse, dark brown annule, followed by a pale brown apical ring, the transverse suture being black. Segm. 3 - 7 with narrow, dark brown ring at extreme base, followed by two oblique pale blue streaks (absent on 4 - 7); the remainder of these segments chestnut-coloured, progressively darker from before backwards, and each with quite distinct, pale bluish or whitish sub-terminal rings, broadly interrupted by black on the dorsum of (6 and 7; sides pale brown. Segm. 8 black, the apical fourth sharply defined clear blue. The entire dorsum of segm. 9, the intersegmental membrane, and the whole of 10, blue.

M. A. Lieftinck: Descriptions and records of S.E. Asiatic Odonata . 359)

Anal appendages black, superiors bluish-ochreous on middle, distal portion of inferiors chestnut-coloured. Superior pair stout, strongly downbent apically, at first sub-cylindrical, thence greatly compressed for the distal two-thirds of each, apices narrow and tapering in dorsal view, very broadly and somewhat irregularly rounded in side-view, each provided with a short interior sub-apical hook, directed obliquely backwards and downwards, followed by a blunt tubercle. Inferior appendages a trifle longer and much slenderer than the upper pair, thick at base, then a little divergent and finally incurved, each with a strong subapical tooth, but with the apices rounded ( fig. 13 ). Length: abd. + app. 40.5, hw. 26 mm.

This remarkable new species, which is a true Coeliccia , appears to stand entirely isolated in the genus and forms a section of its own. To the arrangement of the species adopted by Laidlaw, in his Revision (loc. cit.), a ‘Group 4 of palawana’ may be added, characterized by the veins M 3 and Rs originating well distal to the subnodus, and by the presence of 3 discal cells in all wings.

It seems to be quite distinct from any of the other described species by the highly peculiar colour-pattern of the head and thorax, which is composed of soft rusty-brown and blue tints. C. palawana is further remarkable for the shape of the pterostigma and the anal appendages.

I have to thank Mr. Kenzo Kuwasima of Maloong (Basilan I.), who sent me a great many Philippine dragonflies for examination and study, for the presentation of this fine new species.

Figures

Fig. 13. Coeliccia palawana, sp. n. ♂. Anal appendages, dorsal view and right side.