Skip to main content Skip to main navigation menu Skip to site footer
Responsive image
Issue: Vol. 5741 No. 3: 7 Jan. 2026
Type: Article
Published: 2026-01-07
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5741.3.4
Page range: 495-518
Abstract views: 63
PDF downloaded: 2

Thecagaster charpentieri iranica ssp. nov.—description of the exuviae and the imagines (Odonata: Cordulegastridae)

Arnold-Knoblauch-Ring 76; 14109 Berlin-Wannsee; Germany; Ehrenamtlicher Mitarbeiter Museum für Naturkunde Berlin; 10115 Berlin; Germany
Birkenweg 6d; 15306 Libbenichen; Germany
Billerbecker Str. 6; 48329 Havixbeck; Germany
Department of Biology; University of Gent; 9000 Gent; Belgium
Arnold-Knoblauch-Ring 76; 14109 Berlin-Wannsee; Germany
Odonata dragonflies Anatolia Transcaucasian region Irano-Turanian region Morton’s “race nobilis ”

Abstract

A new subspecies Thecagaster charpentieri iranica ssp. nov. is described. It is a large and impressive cordulegastrid restricted to Southeast Iran. This region represents the southeastern limit of the genus Thecagaster Selys, 1854 and of the family Cordulegastridae in the West Palaearctic. Beside its size, as one of the largest dragonflies in the region, it also exhibits morphological differences in both exuviae and imagines when compared with Thecagaster c. charpentieri (Kolenati, 1846). The adults from Fãrs and Kermãn Provinces in Iran and the exuviae of this subspecies are described in detail. The process of emergence is documented. A phylogenetic comparison of the specimens of the new subspecies with the nominotypical taxon and other closely related species of the genus based on the analysis of COI and ND4 genes of mtDNA is shown, and the history of Morton’s “race nobilis” is discussed.

 

References

  1. Asahina, S. (1973) The Odonata of Iraq. Japanese Journal of Zoology, 17, 17–36. https://doi.org/10.1093/nar/gkm929
  2. Benson, D., Karsch-Mizrachi, I., Lipman, D.J., Ostell, J. & Wheeler, D.L. (2008) GenBank. Nucleic Acids Research, 36, D25–D30. [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/genbank]
  3. Darriba, D., Taboada, G.L., Doallo, R. & Posada, D. (2012) jModelTest 2: More models, new heuristics and parallel computing. Nature Methods, 9, 772. https://doi.org/10.1038/nmeth.2109
  4. Flouri, T., Jiao, X., Rannala, B. & Yang, Z. (2018) Species Tree Inference with BPP using Genomic Sequences and the Multispecies Coalescent. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 35, 2585–2593. https://doi.org/10.1093/molbev/msy147
  5. Fraser, F.C. (1929) A revision of the Fissilabioidea (Cordulegasteridae, Petaliidae and Petaluridae) (Order Odonata): Part 1. Cordulegasteridae. Memoirs of the Indian Museum, 9, 69–167, pls. IX–XII.
  6. Karbstein, K., Kösters, l., Hodač, L., Hofmann, M., Hörandl, E., Tomasello, S., Wagner, N.D., Emerson, B.C., Albach, D.C., Scheu, S., Bradler, S., de Vries, J., Irisarri., I., Li, H., Soltis, P., Mäder, P. & Wäldchen., J. (2024) Species delimitation 4.0: integrative taxonomy meets artificial intelligence. Trends in Ecology & Evolution, 39 (8), 771–784. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2023.11.002
  7. Katoh, K., Rozewicki, J. & Yamada, K.D. (2019) MAFFT online service: Multiple sequence alignment, interactive sequence choice and visualization. Briefings in Bioformatics, 20, 1160–1166. https://doi.org/10.1093/bib/bbx108
  8. Kolenati, F.A. (1846) Insecta Caucasi. Meletemata Entomologica, Imperialis Academiae Scientiarum, Moscow, Russia, 5, 114–115. https://doi.org/10.5962/bhl.title.51370
  9. Leach, W.E. (1815) Entomology. In: Brewster, D. (Ed.), The Edinburgh Encyclopaedia. Vol. 9. William Blackwood, Edinburgh, pp. 165.
  10. Leigh, J. & Bryant, D. (2015) POPART: full-feature software for haplotype network construction. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, 6, 1110–1116. https://doi.org/10.1111/2041-210X.12410
  11. Lohmann, H. (1993) Revision der Cordulegastridae. 2. Beschreibung neuer Arten in den Gattungen Cordulegaster, Anotogaster, Neallogaster und Sonjagaster (Anisoptera). Odonatologica, 22, 273–294.
  12. Mayr, E. (1969) Principles of Systematic Zoology. McGraw-Hill, New York, New York, 428 pp. [https://www.cabdirect.org/cabdirect/abstract/19692203627]
  13. Mayr, E. (1982) Of What Use Are Subspecies? The Auk, 99 (3), 593–595.
  14. Myers, N., Mittermeier, R.A., Mittermeier, C.G., da Fonseca, G.A., & Kent, J. (2000) Biodiversity hotspots for conservation priorities. Nature, 403, 853–858. https://doi.org/10.1038/35002501
  15. Morton, K.J. (1916) X. Some Palaearctic species of Cordulegaster. Transactions of the Entomological Society of London, 63, 273–290. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2311.1916.tb02535.x
  16. Müller, O., Brochard, C., Ikemeyer, D., Snegovaya, N., Lemke, M. & Schneider, T. (2025) Description of the larvae and exuviae of Thecagaster charpentieri (Kolenati, 1846) and Thecagaster brevistigma (Selys, 1854) with a re-description of the exuviae of Thecagaster coronata (Morton, 1916) (Odonata: Cordulegastridae). Zootaxa, 5653 (2), 211–228. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5653.2.3
  17. Onishko, V. (2021) iNaturalist. Available from: https://www.inaturalist.org/observationsnelat=70&nelng=179&swlat=40&swlng=27&taxon_id=1578636 (accessed 17 April 2025)
  18. Rambur, M.P. (1842) Anax immaculifrons. In: Rambur, M.P. (Ed.), Histoire naturelle des Insectes. Névroptères, (Suites a Buffon). Roret, Paris, pp. 189–190.
  19. Ronquist, F., Teslenko, M., van der Mark, P., Ayres, D.L., Darling, A., Höhna, S., Larget, B., Liu, L., Suchard, M.A. & Huelsenbeck, J.P. (2012) MrBayes 3.2: Efficient Bayesian phylogenetic inference and model choice across a large model space. Systematic Biology, 61, 539–542. https://doi.org/10.1093/sysbio/sys029
  20. Schneider, T. & Ikemeyer, D. (2019) The Damselflies and Dragonflies of Iran–Odonata Persica. NIBUK, Natur in Buch und Kunst, Ruppichteroth, 247 pp.
  21. Schneider, T., Vierstraete, A., Müller, O., van Pelt, G.J., Caspers, M., Ikemeyer, D., Snegovaya, N. & Dumont, H.J. (2021) Taxonomic Revision of eastern part of West Palaearctic Cordulegaster using molecular phylogeny and morphology, with the description of two new species (Odonata: Anisoptera: Cordulegastridae). Diversity, 13 (12), 667. https://doi.org/10.3390/d13120667
  22. Schneider, T., Vierstraete, A., Ikemeyer, D., van Pelt, G.J., Casper, M., Müller, O. & Dumont, H.J. (2022) The Oracle of Delphi—a molecular phylogenetic approach to Greek Cordulegaster Leach in Brewster, 1815 (Odonata: Anisoptera: Cordulegastridae). Zootaxa, 5125 (2), 182–204. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5125.2.5
  23. Schneider, T., Vierstraete, A., Kosterin, O.E., Ikemeyer, D., Hu, F.-S., Novelo-Gutierrez, R., Kompier, T., Everett, Jr., L., Müller, O. & Dumont, H.J. (2024) Molecular phylogeny of the family Cordulegastridae (Odonata) worldwide. Insects, 15, 622. https://doi.org/10.3390/insects15080622
  24. Selys-Longchamps, E. de (1854) Synopsis des Gomphines. Bulletin de l’Académie royale des Sciences de Belgique, 21, 23–114.
  25. Skvortsov, V.E. & Snegovaya, N.Y. (2015) Two new species of Cordulegaster Leach, 1815 from Azerbaijan (Odonata, Cordulegastridae). International Dragonfly Fund–Report, 85, 1–22.
  26. Theischinger, G. (1979) Cordulegaster heros sp. nov. und Cordulegaster heros pelionensis ssp. nov., zwei neue Taxa des Cordulegaster boltonii (Donovan)–Komplexes aus Europa (Ansioptera: Cordulegastridae). Odonatologica, 8 (1), 23–38.

How to Cite

Schneider, T., Müller, O., Ikemeyer, D., Vierstraete, A. & Schneider, E. (2026) Thecagaster charpentieri iranica ssp. nov.—description of the exuviae and the imagines (Odonata: Cordulegastridae). Zootaxa, 5741 (3), 495–518. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5741.3.4