Sweltsa coloradensis (Banks)

Stark, Bill P. & Baumann, Richard W., 2018, Two New Stonefly Species In The Sweltsa Coloradensis (Banks) Complex (Plecoptera: Chloroperlidae), Illiesia 14 (2), pp. 30-43 : 34-36

Sweltsa coloradensis (Banks)

( Figs. 1-15 , 36-37 , 42, 45 )

http://lsid.speciesfile.org/urn:lsid: Plecoptera .speciesfile.org: TaxonName:3555

Chloroperla coloradensis Banks, 1898 -1899:199.

Holotype ♀ (Museum of Comparative Zoology), Colorado

Alloperla coloradensis: Needham & Claassen, 1925:113 (In part)

Alloperla (Sweltsa) coloradensis: Ricker, 1943:135 Sweltsa coloradensis: Illies, 1966: 451

Material examined. UNITED STATES: California:

Modoc Co., Rush Creek, Hwy 299, Upper Rush Creek Campground, 24 May 2007, R.W. Baumann, B.C. Kondratieff, 1♂ ( BYU). Colorado: Eagle Co., Deep Creek, 17 Rd, 27 June 1997, B.C. Kondratieff, 11♂, 1♀ ( CSUIC). Gilpin Co., South Boulder Creek, 2 miles W Tolland, 7 July 1991, B.C. Kondratieff, R. Durfee, 16♂, 10♀ ( CSUIC). Grand Co., Colorado River, Kawuneeche Valley, Rocky Mountain National Park, 18 June 1980, B.C. Kondratieff, 3♂, 6♀ ( CSUIC). Gunnison Co., Quartz Creek, 76 Rd, N of Pitkin, 7 July 2008, K.W. Stewart, 25♂, 38♀ ( BPSC). Idaho: Bannock Co., Mill Creek, Summit Campground, 5 June 2010, B. Stark, R.W. Baumann, 2♂ ( BPSC). Nevada: Elko Co., Lamoille Creek, Thomas Canyon Campground, 40° 39’ N, - 115° 24.4’ W. 23 June 2006, S.M. Clark, 7♂, 10♀ ( BYU). Humboldt Co., Indian Creek, Santa Rosa Range, 29 June 1999, A.L. Sheldon, 10♂, 19♀ ( BYU). Mahogany Creek, Summit Lake Mountain, 1 July 1999, A.L. Sheldon, 16♂, 14♀ ( BYU). Nye Co., South Fork Pine Creek, Toquima Range, 7 July 1999, A.L. Sheldon, 14♂, 5♀ ( BYU). Washoe Co., Rock Creek, Granite Range, 5 June 1998, A.L. Sheldon, 1♂ ( BYU). White Pine Co., Berry Creek, Schell Creek Range, Berry Creek Campground, 24 June 2006, R.W. Baumann, B.C. Kondratieff, 15♂, 9♀ ( BYU). Timber Creek, Timber Creek Campground, Schell Creek Range, 39° 24’ N, - 114° 38’ W, R.W. Baumann, B.C. Kondratieff, 35♂, 14♀ ( BYU). New Mexico: Rio Arriba Co., Rio de las Vallecitos, 4 miles N Cañón Plaza, 11 June 1985, R.L. Hassage, 1♂ ( BYU). San Miguel Co., Terrero, Pecos River, 10 June 1974, B. Stark, T. Wolfe, 3♂, 6♀ ( BPSC). Oregon: Harney Co., McCoy Creek, 1 mile above Fish Lake, Steens Mountains, 20 July 1969, S.G. Jewett, Jr. 3♂, 10♀ ( BYU). Umatilla Co., Camas Creek, Hwy 395, Ukiah Dale State Park, 16 May 2001, B. Stark, K.W. Stewart, J.B. Sandberg, 3♂, 2♀ ( BPSC). North Fork John Day River, Hwy 395, 12 miles S Ukiah, 16 May 2001, B. Stark, K.W. Stewart, J.B. Sandberg, 5♂, 1♀ ( BPSC). Union Co., Grande Ronde River, Bird Track Springs Campground, Hwy 244, 45° 18.027’ N, - 118° 18.427’ W, 15 May 2014, B. Stark, A. Harrison, 1♂ ( BPSC). South Dakota: Lawrence Co., Spearfish Creek, Hwy 85, Cheyenne Crossing, 7 June 1995, R.W. Baumann, B. Huntsman, 10♂, 14♀ ( BYU). Utah: Box Elder Co., Clear Creek, Raft River Mountains , 18 June 1979, R.W. Baumann, G.M. Webb, 23♂, 20♀ ( BYU). Juab Co., Granite Creek, Deep Creek Mountains, 14 April 1984, R.W. Baumann, 18♂, 5♀ ( BYU). Salt Lake Co., Big Cottonwood Creek, 22 June 1974, B. Stark, 10♂, 5♀ ( BPSC). Sanpete Co., Willow Creek, Ephraim Canyon, 39.29707 N, - 111.52377 W, 28 June 2005, Johnson, Anderson, 14♂, 16♀ ( BYU). Tooele Co., Harker Creek, Harker Canyon, Sheep Rock Mountains, 39° 59’ N, - 112° 39’ W, 30 May 2012, R.W. Baumann, G.M. Webb, 8♂, 5♀ ( BYU). South Willow Creek, Boy Scout Campground, Stansbury Mountains, 11 June 2007, R.W. Baumann, K. Anderson, 20♂, 21♀ ( BYU). Wasatch Co., Cascade Springs, Uintah National Forest, 27 May 2000, B. Stark, 8♂, 4♀ ( BPSC). Daniels Canyon, Whiskey Springs Picnic Area, 40° 24.677’ N, - 111° 19.278’ W, 13 June 2015, B. Stark. 7♂, 12♀ ( BPSC). Wyoming: Big Horn Co., West Tensleep Creek, N of West Tensleep Lake, 19 July 2005, D.E. Martin, 2♂ ( BYU). Fremont Co., Jakeys Creek, Hwy 26, 5 miles E of Dubois, 20 July 1967, R.W. Baumann, 2♂, 2♀ ( BYU). Washakie Co., 12.5 km ESE Tensleep, 25 June 1996, K.B. Miller, 9♂, 10♀ ( CSUIC).

Adult habitus. Described by Needham & Claassen (1925). Male forewing length 7.0- 7.5 mm, female 8.5-9.0 mm. Head and pronotum pale yellow with dark markings; ocelli connected by a V-shaped dark brown mark, M-line and anteromedian area of head forward of M-line dark brown. Pronotum pale yellow with almost complete dark brown margins and rugosities ( Fig. 42 ). Abdomen brown with subtle, slightly darker median brown stripe. Cerci pale, antennae pale basally but brown in apical two thirds. Wing membrane pale, veins pale brown.

Male epiproct (n=12). Maximum width 320-370 μm, length 360-450 μm. Base relatively narrow, but gradually expanded beyond cowl, and reaching maximum width across lateral projections of epiproct body. Shoulders project conspicuously beyond hook base ( Figs. 1-13 , 45 ).

Aedeagus (n=3). Length 500-524 μm, width 590-760 μm. Entirely membranous; apex with a pair of small finger-shaped lobes in a parallel or V-pattern, apicolateral margins, each bearing a large, projecting, rounded lobe, and mesoventral area with a pair of eye-like lobes ( Figs. 14-15 ); Fingershaped lobes bear scattered setae of variable length, apicolateral lobes bare; mesoventral lobes bare, but each with a transverse groove. Median ventral field below mesoventral eye-shaped lobes with a low nose-like tubercle.

Female subgenital plate. Posterior margin of plate projecting over basal third to half of sternum 9; plate truncate, to slightly concave along posterior margin. Plate usually darkly pigmented over most of surface, contrasting with the pale sternum 9 and the pale basal and lateral areas of sternum 8 ( Figs. 36-37 ).

Diagnosis and distribution. This species, in which the epiproct shoulders conspicuously project beyond the base of the epiproct hook ( Fig. 45 ), is the common form in the central Rockies and Great Basin, and the probable “true” S. coloradensis . Published records exist for S. coloradensis from Alberta, British Columbia and Yukon Territory in Canada, and from Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington and Wyoming in the United States (DeWalt et al. 2017; Surdick 1985). Many of the published records will apply to one of the two newly described species below. The Montana, Washington, Alberta, British Columbia and Yukon specimens examined by us have all been determined as S. lyrata sp.n., and the Arizona and western New Mexico specimens are determined as S. mogollonica sp. n. Specimens from the Central Rocky Mountains of Colorado and Utah are identified as S. coloradensis, Some states (e.g. Idaho and New Mexico) have populations of at least two members of the complex. We have recognized populations of S. coloradensis from the sites listed in the “Material examined” section above.

Figures

Fig. 1. Sweltsa coloradensis male epiproct with dorsal features labelled, Nevada, Nye Co., South Fork Pine Creek.

Figs. 2-7. Sweltsa coloradensis male epiproct, dorsal. 2-3. Colorado, Eagle Co., Deep Creek. 4-5. Colorado, Gilpin Co., South Boulder Creek. 6-7. Colorado, Gunnison Co., Quartz Creek.

Figs. 8-13. Sweltsa coloradensis male epiproct, dorsal. 8. Idaho, Bannock Co., Mill Creek. 9. Oregon, Umatilla Co., John Day River. 10. Utah, Wasatch Co., Cascade Springs. 11. Wyoming, Washakie Co., ESE Tensleep. 12. Nevada, Nye Co., South Fork Pine Creek. 13. South Dakota, Lawrence Co., Spearfish Creek.

Figs. 14-17. Sweltsa sp. aedeagus, ventral. 14. S. coloradensis, Nevada, White Pine Co., Berry Creek. 15. S. coloradensis, Colorado, Gilpin Co., South Boulder Creek. 16. S. lyrata, Yukon, Ogilvie River. 17. S. mogollonica, Arizona, Graham Co., Grant Creek. (al = apical lobe; ll = lateral lobe; vl = ventral lobe).

Figs. 36-41. Sweltsa sp. female terminalia, ventral. 36-37. Sweltsa coloradensis, Colorado, Gilpin Co., South Boulder Creek. 38-39. Sweltsa lyrata, Montana, Mineral Co., St. Regis River. 40-41. Sweltsa mogollonica, Arizona, Apache Co., North Fork White River (SgP = subgenital plate).

Figs. 42-47. Sweltsa sp. head and pronotal pigment and epiproct variation. 42. Sweltsa coloradensis, Colorado, Eagle Co., Deep Creek. 43. Sweltsa lyrata, Montana, Mineral Co., St. Regis River. 44. Sweltsa mogollonica, New Mexico, Catron Co., Willow Creek. Pigment patterns shown here are variable within and between populations of the three species. 45. Sweltsa coloradensis epiproct, Colorado, Gilpin Co., South Boulder Creek. 46. Sweltsa lyrata epiproct, Washington, Pend Oreille Co., Sullivan Creek. 47. Sweltsa mogollonica epiproct, New Mexico, Catron Co., Willow Creek.