Chloronia antilliensis Flint 1970

Chloronia antilliensis Flint

Chloronia antilliensis Flint, 1970:240.

Male holotype and female allotype are in the National Museum of Natural History.

DESCRIPTION.—Present description is based on eight males and 23 females.

Head: Pale yellow with fuscous ocellar triangle, apical half of mandibles, labial and maxillary palpi, and compound eyes. Two elongate, angular fuscous marks posteriorly on occiput. Antennae pale yellow, apical fourth infuscate; with 37–43 flagellomeres.

Thorax: Pronotum pale yellow with an anterior pair of elongate fuscous marks and a posterior pair of round spots. Mesonotum with 2 lateral fuscous spots, 2 mesal spots are generally lacking. Metanotum pale yellow throughout.

Legs: Pale yellow. Tibia of fore- and often midleg with a basal dark spot, all legs with a dark spot at junction of tibia and basal tarsomere; apical tarsomeres generally infuscate.

Forewing: Yellow. Costal crossveins pale through centers, apices infuscate; 29–35 in number. Longitudinal veins pale Most crossveins fuscous; with light fuscous spots in anterior cells, usually centered on crossveins; anal and apical cells usually with dark marks.

Hind Wing: Pale yellow; rarely with 2nd r fuscous.

Male Abdomen: Pale yellow. 9th tergum trianguloid with a small patch of enlarged, spinous hairs. 9th sternum with a small trianguloid lobe from posterior margin. 10th tergite elongate, parallel sided, nearly straight. 9th gonostylus incurved, inflated apicad, with a sclerotized apical point. 10th gonostylus a rounded lobe about as long as broad, widely separated mesally, connected by a narrow bandlike 10th gonocoxite.

Forewing Length: Male, 28–34 mm (avg. 30.9); female, 31–43 mm (avg. 37.9).

INTRASPECIFIC VARIATION.—Other than the considerable variation in size, the dark spots in the cells of the forewing vary considerably in intensity. Rarely only a few basal spots are visible, but generally most are indicated, even if only faintly.

TEMPORAL DISTRIBUTION.—Adults were collected only between 11 April and 15 June, in spite of collecting during most of the year in the same areas. Males were taken from 11 April to 6 May, and females were taken from 14 April to 15 June, an indication that the males may emerge slightly before and for a shorter period than the females, which probably live longer.

GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION.—All known examples were collected on the Lesser Antillean island of Dominica, with full collection data given in Flint, 1970. A species of this genus, probably C. antilliensis, was reported verbally by Mr. J. Bonfils to occur on the adjacent island of Guadeloupe.

SPECIES RELATIONSHIPS.—The relationships of this species are rather puzzling. The presence of the typical dark spots posteriorly on the head distinguish it from the corripiens group. It still has the basically primitive form of ninth sternum, gonostylus, and 10th tergite. The short and rounded 10th gonostylus is probably also a rather primitive condition. The presence of a patch of spinous setae on the ninth tergum is a distinct specialization, however. It would, therefore, appear to be the most unspecialized member of the spotted-head group and not closely related to any other known species.

Chloronia antilliensis là một loài côn trùng trong họ Corydalidae thuộc bộ Megaloptera. Loài này được Flint miêu tả năm 1970.