Dominikon Dobosz, Krivokhatsky & Ábrahám, 2022

Krivokhatsky, Victor, Dobosz, Roland & Ábrahám, Levente, 2022, The new antlion genus Dominikon gen. nov. with the description of a new species Dominikon aspoecki sp. nov. (Neuroptera: Myrmeleontidae), Zootaxa 5196 (1), pp. 94-114 : 99-100

Dominikon Dobosz, Krivokhatsky & Ábrahám gen. nov.

Type species: Myrmeleon lagopus Gerstaecker, 1894:143 .

Nedroledon striatus Hölzel, 1972: 65 , Figs 191 (wings), 192–195 (male and female genitalia).

Diagnosis: The genus is closely related to Nedroledon Navás, 1914 in the habitus and structure of the wings and inner male genitalia. However, the postventral processus of the male ectoproct is very long. Tibial spurs are generally shorter than in Nedroledon species, and they are as long as tarsal segment 1 in the hind leg. This new genus contains three species.

Description: Middle-sized species. Sexually dimorphic, male abdomen considerably longer than wings, female abdomen as long as wings. Head as wide as thorax. Vertex arched, almost bare. Pronotum is longer than the width at the distal margin, with a pair of lateral irregular dark brown stripes running through their entire length and with a bright, light-coloured line in the middle ( Figs. 14a , 15a–c ). Fore and hindwing narrow, with rather subacute apex and obtuse anal area, venation not dense. Cross-veins simple in coastal area. Pterostigma bicoloured. In forewing radius sector originates after cubital fork, A2 bifurcate, A3 simple. 7–9 cross-veins before origin of R 1 in forewing, in hindwing only one cross-vein ( Fig. 5 ). Legs long and slender. Tibial spurs slightly bent and in hind leg as long as tarsal segment 1. Tarsal claws opposable. Male ectoproct with long postventral processus. Parameres arch-shaped.

Distribution: Iran, Turkey, Turkmenistan. It is found in several provinces of the Irano-Turanian Subregion of the Sethian (Saharo-Gobian) Desert Region. ( Krivokhatsky 2011) ( Fig. 6 ).

The genus could have split off from its common ancestor during the developmental adaptation to Asian aridification in the Oligocene when the ejected sister genus Nedroledon broke up into its eastern and western parts. According to the preferred Sethian desert model, the distributions of the species are associated with two centres of biodiversity, i.e., the Irano-Turanian-Anatolian ( D. lagopus , D. iranensis ) and eastern Irano-Turanian ( D. aspoecki ).

Etymology: Dominikon originates from the name of Dominik, after the name of the sixteen-year-old son of the second author (RD), who was born at the time when the new taxon was recognized.

Figures

FIGURE 5. Wing venation of Dominikon lagopus (Gerstaecker, 1894) (Photo: Witalis Szołtys).Abbreviations: C—Costa, Sc— Subcosta, R—Radius, Rs1—Radial vein 1, Sc+R—Subcosta + Radius, Rs1– Radial vein 1, Mp—Media posterior, Mp1—Media posterior 1, Cua—Cubitus anterior, Cup—Cubitus posterior, Cup+A1—Cubitus posterior+Anal 1, A2 and A3—Anal vein 2 and Anal vein 3, av—ambient vein, ps—pterostigma, hsc—hypostigmatic cell, cgv—costal gradate veins,, rgv—radial gradate veins, r—reghma area, pv—prefork vein.

FIGURE 6. Distribution of Nedroledon spp.: blue dots—N. anatolicus, orange dots—N. maculatus Dominikon spp.: red dots— D. lagopus, white dots—D. iranensis, green dots—D. aspoecki sp. n.

FIGURE 14. Dominikon aspoecki holotype: a—vertex and pronotum, dorsal view, b—head, frontal view (Photo:Adam Larysz), c—thorax and legs, lateral view (Photo: Witalis Szołtys)

FIGURE 15. Dominikon spp. pronotum (dorsal view), tarsal segments with tibial spurs on hind leg, D. aspoecki sp. n.: a, d; D. iranensis: b, e; D. lagopus: c, f. (Photo: Adam Larysz)