Manggabora wapitja, Dean & Suter, 2004

Dean, J. C. & Suter, P. J., 2004, Descriptions of new species and a new genus of leptophlebiid mayflies (Insecta: Ephemeroptera) from the Northern Territory, Australia, Memoirs of Museum Victoria 61 (1), pp. 111-118 : 114-116

Manggabora wapitja sp. nov.

Figures 14–34

Type material. Holotype: male imago (reared from nymph), Coobanrbora Spring, Kakadu National Park , Northern Territory, 12˚24'S 132˚40'E, 21 Aug 1999, J. Dean ( NMV T-18491).

Paratype: male imago (reared from nymph; wings, legs and nymphal exuvia mounted on slides), collected with holotype ( NMV T-18492) .

Other material examined. Northern Territory. 10N, Coobanrbora Spring, Kakadu National Park, Northern Territory, 12˚24'S 132˚40'E, 21 Aug 1999, J. Dean; 1MI, 17N, Koolpin Gorge, Kakadu National Park, 13˚30'S 132˚35'E, 18 Aug 1999, J. Dean; 1MI, 1FSI, 11N, Walker Creek, Litchfield National Park, 13˚05'S 130˚42'E, 31 Aug 1999, J. Dean; 14N, Florence Falls, Litchfield National Park, 13˚06'S 130˚47'E, 31 Aug 1999, J. Dean; 1FSI, 21N, Tolmer Falls. Litchfield National Park, 13˚12 ’ S 130˚43 ’ E, 31 Aug 1999, J. Dean; 2MI, 20N, Mann River, Arnhem Land, 12˚22'S 134˚08'E, 26 Aug 1999, J. Dean; 6N, Liverpool River, Arnhem Land, 12˚21' ’ S 134˚07'E, 26 Aug 1999, J. Dean; 1FI, 22N, Manggabor Creek, Arnhem Land, 12˚17'S 134˚05'E, 26 Aug 1999, J. Dean; 1FI, 56N, Kambolgie Creek, Kakadu National Park, 13˚31'S 132˚23'E, 16–19 Aug 1999, J. Dean; 3N, Kambolgie Creek, Kakadu National Park, 13˚31'S 132˚23'E, 1 May 1990, D. Cartwright; 13N, Barramundie Gorge, Kakadu National Park, 13˚19'S 132˚26'E, 22 Aug 1999, J. Dean; 1FI, 3N, Gerowie Creek, 7 km N of Bukbukluk Lookout, Kakadu Highway, 13˚26'S 132˚16'E, 19 Aug 1999, J. Dean; 32N, creek 2 km N of Bukbukluk Lookout, Kakadu Highway, 13˚29'S 132˚15'E, 19 Aug 1999, J. Dean; 1FI, 1N, South Alligator River, Koolpin Crossing, 13˚32'S 132˚33'E, 18 Aug 1999, J. Dean; 13N, South Alligator River, Gunlom Road Crossing, 13˚30'S 132˚29'E, 19 Aug 1999, J. Dean; 2N, South Alligator River, d/s Gimbat, 13˚35'S 132˚36'E, 1 May 1990, D. Cartwright; 1MI, 1MSI, 1FSI, Jim Jim Creek, 3 km d/s Falls, 1 Sep 1979, J. Blyth; 2N, Magela Creek, u/s Bowerbird Billabong, 3 May 1990, D. Cartwright; 16N, Radon Springs, Kakadu National Park, 12˚45'S 132˚55'E, 23 Apr. 1990, D. Cartwright; 4N, Gulungul Creek, Radon Springs, Kakadu National Park, 12˚45'S 132˚55'E, 13 Aug 1999, J. Dean; 25N, Baroalba Creek, Kubarra Pools, 12˚49'S 132˚52'E, 28 Apr 1990, D. Cartwright; 11N, Baroalba Creek, Gubarra Pools, 12˚49'S 132˚52'E, 14 Aug 1999, J. Dean; 6N, Harris Creek, u/s South Alligator River, 1 May 1990, D. Cartwright. Western Australia. 27N, King Edward River, Mitchell River Road, 25 Sep 1995, L. Metzeling.

Description. Imago. Length of male: body 4.7–5.0 mm, forewing 5.1–5.2 mm; Length of female: body 4.1–5.9 mm, forewing 4.9–6.3 mm. Head predominantly medium brown; antennae pale yellow; ocelli white, black at base; male eyes with upper lobes pale orange-brown, in contact dorsally, lower lobes grey. Thorax with meso- and metascutum golden-yellow; lateral surfaces golden with some patches of medium brown. Forelegs with femora reddish-brown, tibiae pale yellow with apex medium brown, tarsi pale yellow; middle and hind legs uniformly pale yellow; forelegs of male with ratios of segment lengths 0.69–0.70; 1.00 (1.74–1.75 mm); 0.05; 0.27–0.31; 0.28; 0.18–0.21; 0.10–0.11; tarsal claws dissimilar, one claw with apical hook and ventral flange and the other expanded and pad-like, without terminal hook (Fig. 16). Forewings hyaline except for pterostigma, which is white and opaque; veins predominantly unpigmented (Fig. 14). Male abdomen reddish, dorsally pale tending to hyaline; each segment with narrow band of medium brown along posterior margin and pair of weakly developed brown lateral markings (Figs 17, 18); abdominal sterna pale, tending to hyaline. Penes lobes (Figs 19–22) narrow, fused almost to apex, each lobe with a stout, retractable apical spine; subapically with a robust, medial projection on the ventral surface. Female abdominal colour pattern similar to male, although generally a little darker, reddish-brown; abdominal sternum 9 strongly projecting, without apical excision (Fig. 23). Subimago. Wings pale greyish-yellow, abdominal colour pattern similar to imago. Mature nymph. General colour yellow. Mouthparts as in Figs 25–29. Legs yellow, all segments banded; foretarsus with 10–15 ventral spine-like setae, relatively uniform in length; tarsal claws with ventral teeth (Figs 30, 31). Abdomen yellow, each segment with pair of brown lateral markings (Fig. 24); gills linear, lateral tracheae very weakly developed or absent (Fig. 32).

Etymology. The name wapitja is derived from the word for ‘digging stick’ in the D _ ät_iwuy language of eastern Arnhem land ( Ganambarr, 1999), and refers to the appearance of the male genitalia in lateral view.

Remarks. The genus is monotypic. Suter (1992) included this species in his keys as “ Leptophlebiidae Genus A sp.1”, and Dean (1999) designated the nymph “Genus V sp.AV1”.