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| Protosticta sooryaprakashi Haneef, Chandran, Sawant, Beevi, Koparde & Kunt, 2025 |
Abstract
We erect a new species of damselfly, Protosticta sooryaprakashi sp. nov. from Sampaje, Kodagu District, Karnataka, India (type specimens are deposited in the Biodiversity Lab Research Collections, currently held at the National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bengaluru). Morphologically, this species shows close affinity with the members of the P. sanguinostigma Fraser, 1922 group; however, it is distinguished by unique features in its prothorax, caudal appendages, and accessory genitalia. Additionally, the analyses also revealed a significant genetic distance between the new species and other species of this group. We present an updated identification key to the males of Protosticta Selys, 1885 species in the Western Ghats, incorporating newly available diagnostic information.
Odonata, Karnataka, phylogeny, Sampaje, species discovery, sympatry, taxonomy
Protosticta sooryaprakashi sp. nov.
Koolikkunnu Abdul Razak Muhammed HANEEF, Ayikkara Vivek CHANDRAN, Dattaprasad SAWANT, Yousuf Pachani Maimoonath BEEVI, Pankaj KOPARDE and Krushnamegh KUNTE. 2025. Description of Protosticta sooryaprakashi sp. nov. (Odonata: Zygoptera: Platystictidae) from the Western Ghats, India. Zootaxa. 5723(3); 359-383. DOI: doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5723.3.3 [2025-11-26]
