Ceriagrion junceum Dijkstra & Kipping

Dijkstra, Klaas-Douwe B., Kipping, Jens & Mézière, Nicolas, 2015, Sixty new dragonfly and damselfly species from Africa (Odonata), Odonatologica 44 (4), pp. 447-678 : 510-514

Ceriagrion junceum Dijkstra & Kipping sp. nov. – Spikerush Citril (Type Photo 16, Photos 19, 22– 24, Fig. 10)

Taxonomy

This taxon was mistaken for C. sakejii and C. suave but is closer to C. bakeri in its ecology, genetics and morphology ( Tree 2). It was mentioned but not keyed by Dijkstra & Clausnitzer (2014), who also diagnosed C. sakejii poorly. That localised bog species is easily distinguished from other suave - complex (see C. banditum sp. nov.) species by (1) the thorax with distinct blackish dots in the humeral and metapleural fossae and a sharp contrast between the warm orange brown dorsum and creamish sides; (2) the penis with finger-like lateral lobes, rather like C. bakeri ( Fig. 10); (3) the dorsal excision of S 10 with pale and somewhat thickened and raised borders that bear a distinct gap between them medially; and (4) the notably short cerci that appear almost round in dorsal view ( Fig. 10).

Material studied

Holotype ♂. RMNH.INS.505431 , Congo-Kinshasa, Katanga , Upemba National Park, Mukana, west of Lusinga , depressions with (seasonal) marsh, bog lakes and gallery forest in open grassy plains ( Photo 19), 1770 – 1840 m a.s.l. (8.91 ° S 27.18 E), 10–14 -xi- 2011, leg. K.-D.B. Dijkstra, RMNH .

Further material. ANGOLA (Uíge Province): 3 ♂ ( RMNH.INS.508385 , RMNH.INS.508386 ), 5 km N of Negage, Canuango source near agricultural school , dammed lake with floating and emergent vegetation, boggy perimeter, 1240 m a.s.l. (7.7105 ° S 15.2696 ° E), 24 -xi- 2012, leg. K.-D.B. Dijkstra, RMNH . 1 ♂ 2 ♂ ♀, 8 km NNE of Negage, swamp at Cangulu , flooded depression with emergent vegetation, 1212 m a.s.l. (7.6936 ° S 15.2873 ° E), 29 -xi- 2012, leg. K.-D.B. Dijkstra, RMNH . CONGO-KINSHASA ( Katanga ): 4 ♂ ( RMNH.INS.505432 ), 12 ♂ ♀, as holotype RMNH . 3 ♂, Kundelungu National Park, source area of Lutshipuka , grassy plateau with pools, bog, wet meadows and gallery forest patches, 1680 – 1705 m a.s.l. (10.58 ° S, 27.83 ° E), 23–24 -xi- 2011, leg. K.-D.B. Dijkstra, RMNH . 1 ♀ ( RMNH.INS.505557 ), Upemba National Park, Kabwekanono, source area of Kafwi , bogs in open grassy plains, 1770 –1820 m a.s.l. (8.937 ° S 27.166 ° E), 15 -xi- 2011, leg. K.- D.B. Dijkstra, RMNH . 2 ♂ ♀, Upemba National Park, source area of Lusinga near park headquarters , small dam, 1760 – 1800 m (8.933 ° S 27.199 ° E), 11 - xi- 2011, leg. K.-D.B. Dijkstra, RMNH . ZAMBIA (Copperbelt Province): 1 ♂, Chimfunshi Wildlife Reserve near Chingola , shallow pool in grassy dambo near gallery forest, 1296 m a.s.l. (12.3676 ° S 27.4831 ° E), 20 -xi- 2014, leg. J. Kipping, CJKL . ZAMBIA (Northern Province): 1 ♂, Lake Chila near Mbala , boggy eastern lake shore, at shallow grassy pools, 1619 m a.s.l. (8.8341 ° S 31.3948 ° E), 11 -xii- 2014, leg. J. Kipping, CJKL . 2 ♂ ♀ 8 ♂, Kakoma, 19 km N of Mbala , shallow grassy pools at extended marshland, 1449m a.s.l. (8.6949 ° S 31.3013 ° E), 11 -xii- 2014, leg. J. Kipping, CJKL . 1 ♂, Shiwa N’gandu, Kapishya Hot Springs , shallow grassy pools near Mansha River ( Photo 23), 1434 m a.s.l. (11.1703 ° S 31.6057 ° E), 06-xii- 2014, leg. J. Kipping, CJKL . 6 ♂, Shiwa N’gandu, farm area, 3.5 km N of eastern entrance , shallow grassy pools near Mansha River , 1469 m a.s.l. (11.1851 ° S 31.7878 ° E), 03-xii- 2014, leg. J. Kipping, CJKL . ZAMBIA (Northwestern Province): 2 ♂ ♀ 1 ♂, Sakufola, 13 km NE of Ikelenge , dambo valley with shallow, slightly acidic pools near Zambezi River, surrounded by miombo woodland ( Photo 24), 1312 m a.s.l. (11.1653 ° S 24.3565 ° E), 26 -xi- 2014, leg. J. Kipping, CJKL .

Genetics

One unique haplotype (n= 5) nearest to C. bakeri and C. banditum ( Tree 2).

Male morphological diagnosis

Combines traits that recall other species in the suave -complex (see C. banditum ) including (1) moderate size, Hw 18.5–20.5 mm (n = 24); (2) a rather greyish dorsum of the head; (3) the thorax somewhat like C. sakejii with distinct blackish dots in the humeral and metapleural fossae, a warm orange brown dorsum and creamish sides, but only weak contrast between these colours; (4) the penis with finger-like lateral lobes, rather like C. bakeri ( Fig. 10); (5) the apical excision on S 10 about a third as deep as the segment and bordered with tiny black denticles that appear as dark ridges; (6)the cerci with the apical black tooth close to the tips, turned inwards and thus well-visible in dorsal view; and (7) the relatively slender and weak-heeled paraprocts that extend slightly but clearly beyond the tooth of the cerci ( Fig. 10).

Etymology Latin “of rushes” refers to the preference for sedge-like vegetation (neuter adjective).

Range and ecology

Widespread across Katanga , Angola and northern Zambia ( Map 4) between 1 200 and 1 850 m a.s.l. at shallow flooded depressions with dense grasslike vegetation, particularly spikerushes ( Eleocharis sp.). The region is the centre of Ceriagrion diversity in Africa, with 13 of the 20 African species present and up to eight at a single site. Ceriagrion junceum can share its pools with C. banditum sp. nov., C. corallinum Campion, 1914 , C. katamborae Pinhey, 1961 , C. kordofanicum , C. platystigma Fraser, 1941 and C. whellani Longfield, 1952 . It occurs rarely with C. sakejii , which prefers grassy and mossy seeps and bogs with no or little open water, or with the continentwide C.glabrum and C. suave that favour more temporary waters. Pinhey (1984) recorded its nearest relative, the strikingly blue-fronted C. bakeri , in northern Zambia and while it has a very similar habitat, we were unable to confirm this overlap despite extensive fieldwork in the region.