Croce filipennis Westwood, 1841

Suryanarayanan, T. B. & Bijoy, C., 2021, First Record of Croce filipennis Westwood, 1841 (Neuroptera: Nemopteridae) from Kerala, Records of the Zoological Survey of India 121 (2), pp. 257-260 : 258-259

Croce filipennis Westwood, 1841

1841. Nematoptera filipennis Westwood, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. , p. 13.

1921. Croce filipennis Dover, Rec. Indian Mus. , 22: 298.

Species is characterised by short clubbed antennae thicker towards end. Forewing narrow at base and broader in middle. Costal area of forewing with 15 veins before pterostigma. Pterostigma black, elongated filling 5 rows of cells (Figure C). Thread-like hindwing three to four times longer than body.

External margin somewhat concave with parabolic apex. Costal area of the forewing with 15 veins before pterostigma. Pterostigma elongated, filling 5 rows of cells, hairs seen in external margin as well as in inner veins. Hindwing filiform, dark brown in its three basilar quarters, white at end, with a visible central vein, divided at base. It is 2.5X times longer than forewing.

Legs: Coxa, trochanter, yellowish-brown in colour. Femur also yellowish-brown in colour with small dark-brown hairs. Tibia dark-brown without tibial spurs. Tarsus dark-brown with 1-5 segments. Claws small, reddish-brown distally.

Abdomen: Smaller than forewing with alternate blackish-grey and harbour-grey. Abdominal tip of female specimen (Figure D) broad and without distinct sternite 8.

Remarks: Male can easily distinguished from females by elongate, slender abdominal tip and gonarcus with arcessus.

Distribution: India (widespread)

Material examined: India: 2♀, Pudunagaram, Kerala ,

10.683 N, 76.683 E, 02.ii.2020, 10.ii.2020, 1.00 a.m.,

1.30 a.m., leg. Bijoy C, SERLNR048 , SERLNR049 ; 2♀ ,

Description: Colour and Measurements: Female: Blackish-grey (Figure A). Body (Length: Width) = (7.3:

1.4), Forewing (Length: Width) = (10.2: 2.5), Hindwing (Length: Width) = (26.8: 0.5).

Head: Light-yellow in colour with a brown spot on vertex; eyes rounded and very prominent. Short clubbed antennae, noticeably thicker towards apex. Mouth parts modified with a prominent rostrum (Figure B). Clypeus dark-brown in colour. Labrum yellowish-brown with sparse yellow hairs on ventral margin. Mandible reddish-brown, but black distally. Maxillae and labial palpi reddish-brown in colour.

Thorax: Pronotum narrow, yellowish-brown centrally and brown laterally with small hairs. Mesonotum yellowish-brown dorsally and dark-brown laterally. Yellowish-brown hairs on whole mesonotum sparse. Metanotum dark-brown with lateral hairs.

Wings: Membrane hyaline forewings with brown veins.

Irinjalakuda , Kerala, 10.333 N, 76.233 E, 15.ii.2020 ,

05.iii.2020, 6.30 p.m., 6.20 p.m., leg. Suryanarayanan T. B, SERLNR050 , SERLNR052 ; 1♀, Irinjalakuda , Kerala ,

10.333 N, 76.233E, 03.iii.2020, 5.30 p.m., leg. Aswathy M. Das, SERLNR051 ; 1♀, Irinjalakuda , Kerala , 10.333 N, 76.233E, 10-III-2020, 4.30 p.m., leg. Aswathi P. G, SERLNR053 ; 1♀, Irinjalakuda , Kerala , 10.333 N, 76.233E,

03.ii.2021, 1.00 a.m., leg. Bijoy C, SERLNR105.

Distribution: India: Uttar Pradesh (Lucknow), Gujarat ( Surat), Madhya Pradesh (Jabalpur, Ghamapur), Rajasthan (Jodhpur), West Bengal (Kolkata), Delhi (JagatPuri), Bihar, Odisha, Maharashtra (Tadobha- Andhari Tiger reserve, Bhandara, Pune), Karnataka, Telangana (Hyderabad) (Ghosh, 1977, 1983, 1998; Ghosh & Sen 1977; Sharma et al., 2001; Sharma & Chandra 2012, 2013; Chandra et al., 2011; Rajasekar & Sridevi, 2018) ( Figure 2 ).

Figures

Figure 2. Distribution map of Croce filipennis.