''Vestalis submontana'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

damselfly Damselflies are flying insects of the suborder Zygoptera in the order Odonata. They are similar to dragonflies, which constitute the other odonatan suborder, Anisoptera, but are smaller and have slimmer bodies. Most species fold the wings along ...

belonging to the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Calopterygidae The Calopterygidae are a family of damselflies, in the suborder Zygoptera. They are commonly known as the broad-winged damselflies, demoiselles, or jewelwings. These rather large damselflies have wingspans of 50–80 mm (compared to about 44 ...

. It is principally found in the Western Ghats of

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, with some records further east. Frederic Charles Fraser described two new subspecies ''Vestalis gracilis amaena'' and ''Vestalis apicalis amaena'' in 1929 and later gave replacement names ''Vestalis gracilis montana'' and ''Vestalis apicalis submontana'' in 1934. The type specimens were from

Nilgiri mountains The Nilgiri Mountains form part of the Western Ghats in northwestern Tamil Nadu, Southern Karnataka, and eastern Kerala in India. They are located at the trijunction of three states and connect the Western Ghats with the Eastern Ghats. At le ...

in Western Ghats of

South India South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union territ ...

. Matti Hämäläinen studied the type specimens of these taxa and other material preserved in collections of BMNH (London), IRSN (Brussels) and RMNH (Leiden) in 2011. He concluded that there is striking structural and colour differences which indicate that ''submontana'' is a distinct species. And its sympatric occurrence with ''V. apicalis'' and ''V. gracilis'' alone rules out its former subspecies status. So ''V. a. submontana'' is now considered as a separate species ''Vestalis submontana'' Fraser 1934 and ''Vestalis gracilis montana'' Fraser, 1934 a synonym of it.

Description and habitat

It is similar to '' Vestalis apicalis'' and '' Vestalis gracilis''; but the face is black and the black apex of wings much restricted, occupying only about 2·5 mm. It is not sharply defined in young males and in females. The body color is dull golden-bronzed metallic green. It is a bit smaller than the other two species. The structure of the male appendages is also different. The inferior appendages are proportionally longer than the other two species. File:Vestalis submontana -adult male.jpg, Male (sub-adult) File:Vestalis submontana - male side view.jpg, Caudal appendages of male (lateral view) File:Vestalis submontana Male.jpg, Caudal appendages of male (ventral view) It is found in the upland forest streams in

References

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Calopterygidae Odonata of Asia Insects of India Endemic fauna of India Insects described in 1934 Taxa named by Frederic Charles Fraser {{Calopterygoidea-stub

Description and habitat

See also

References

External links