Liyang stonefly (Kamimuria liyangensis) from Jiangsu, China, which has penis similar to Kamimuria hainana

Dlium Liyang City stonefly (Kamimuria liyangensis) from Jiangsu, China, which has penis similar to Kamimuria hainana

NEWS - Liyang stonefly (Kamimuria liyangensis sp. nov.) from Jiangsu Province is located in the southeastern coast of China which has no mountains on the plateau with only a few hilly areas mostly distributed in the southern part has a penis similar to Kamimuria hainana Li, Wang & Yu 2012.

Kamimuria Klapálek 1907 is the most species-rich genus in the subfamily Perlinae with about 93 species known worldwide, distributed in the Oriental and Palaearctic Realms, mainly in China. Over the past 30 years, the number of Kamimuria species recorded in China has increased dramatically to 60 species.

Jiangsu Province is located in the southeastern coast of China and has no mountains on the plateau, with only a few hilly areas mostly distributed in its southern region. Recently researchers examined Kamimuria materials from Jiangsu and described a new species.

Male K. liyangensis has a generally brown to dark brown colouration (Due to being preserved in alcohol, the colours in the specimens appear faded in the photograph). Head pale yellow with black marking covering ocellar area.

Antennae and palpi dark brown. Pronotum dark brown with darker rugosities, anterior margin and stripes along median suture darker. Legs yellow brown with dark knees. Wings membranous grey, veins brown.

Tergum 1–8 unmodified. Tergum 9 centre with sensilla basiconica. Hemitergal lobe slender, hook-like, apex slightly re-curved and nearly reaching the posterior margin of tergum 9.

Penis membranous, with a ring-shaped group of large spines at the tip, interrupted by a spongy membranous projection in the middle. The base of the penis on the dorsal side is densely covered with small dot-like spines.

This species is known only from the type locality, Liyang City, Jiangsu Province. The penis of the new species is similar to that of K. hainana. Both species have a spine-free membranous area at the apex of the dorsal side of the endophallus, while the base is densely covered with small spines. In addition, the ventral side of the endophallus has a spine-free membranous region.

However, K. hainana has a patch of basal spinules divided by a funnel-shaped region on the dorsal surface, which terminates subapically. The spines on both lobes form a heart-shaped ring when viewed from the ventral side.

In K. liyangensis, the dorsal side of the base of the penis is densely covered with small, point-like spines. In ventral view, there is a cluster of large, ring-shaped spines at the tip, interrupted in the middle by a spongy, membranous prominence.

Original research

Zeng L-L, Huo Q-B, Du Y-Z (2024). A new species of the genus Kamimuria (Plecoptera, Perlidae) from Jiangsu, China with re-description of K. microda Du, 2002. Biodiversity Data Journal 12: e137424, DOI:10.3897/BDJ.12.e137424

Dlium theDlium

Humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) manufacture bubble-nets as tools to increase prey intake

NEWS - Humpback whales ( Megaptera novaeangliae ) create bubble net tools while foraging, consisting of internal tangential rings, and actively control the number of rings, their size, depth and horizontal spacing between the surrounding bubbles. These structural elements of the net increase prey intake sevenfold. Researchers have known that humpback whales create “bubble nets” for hunting, but the new report shows that the animals also manipulate them in a variety of ways to maximize catches. The behavior places humpbacks among the rare animals that make and use their own tools. “Many animals use tools to help them find food, but very few actually make or modify these tools themselves,” said Lars Bejder, director of the Marine Mammal Research Program (MMRP), University of Hawaii at Manoa. “Humpback whales in southeast Alaska create elaborate bubble nets to catch krill. They skillfully blow bubbles in patterns that form a web with internal rings. They actively control details such ...

Asian palmyra palm (Borassus flabellifer)

Asian palmyra palm ( Borassus flabellifer ) is a species of Arecaceae , palm, sturdy, single-stemmed, cylindrical shape, growing 15-30 meters tall and with a trunk diameter of about 60 cm. The leaves are clustered at the tip of the trunk, forming a rounded crown . The leaf blade resembles a round fan , up to 1.5 meters in diameter. The leaflets are 5-7 cm wide, and the underside is whitish with a waxy coating. The leaf stalk is up to 1 meter long, with a broad, black midrib at the top and a row of two-pointed spines . The inflorescence is borne on a cob, 20-30 cm long, and the stalk is about 50 cm long. The fruits are clustered in clusters of about 20, round, 7-20 cm in diameter, with a brownish-black outer skin and yellow flesh on the inside. The fruit has three seeds in a thick, hard shell. Kingdom: Plantae Phylum: Tracheophyta Subphylum: Angiospermae Class: Liliopsida Order: Arecales Family: Arecaceae Subfamily: Coryphoideae Tribe: Borasseae Subtribe: Lataniinae Genu...

Javan mocca or Javan slender caesar (Amanita javanica)

OPINION - Javan mocca or Javan slender caesar ( Amanita javanica ) is a mysterious fungus species and has been enigmatic since it was first reported by Boedijn in 1951 and after that no explanation or reporting of specimens is believed to be the same as expected. Boedijn (1951) described A. javanica which grew on Java island as having the characteristics covered in the Amanita genus. Corner and Bas in 1962 tried to describe Javan mocca and all species in Amanita based on specimens in Singapore. Over time some reports say that they have found A. javanica specimens in other Southeast Asia including also China, Japan, India and Nepal. But there is no definitive knowledge and many doubt whether the specimen is the same as described by Boedijn (1951). I was fortunate to have seen this species one afternoon and soon I took out a camera for some shots. In fact, I've only met this mushroom species once. Javan mocca is an endangered species and I have never seen in my experience in...

Dlium