Euepiproctophora

Belongs within: Euodonata.
Contains: Stenophlebioptera, Anisoptera.

The odonate clade Euepiproctophora includes the living dragonflies and the Asian relict genus Epiophlebia. The name of the clade is derived from the development of the epiprocts at the end of the male’s abdomen to form part of the claspers used in mating. Epiophlebia comprises two species of odonate found in Japan (E. superstes) and the Himalayas (E. laidlawi); though similar to a typical dragonfly in overall appearance, they have petiolate wings more similar to those of the damselflies in the Zygoptera (Grimaldi & Engel 2005).

A halfway house, halfway down Honshu island

Published 22 November 2010

The insect order Odonata contains two types of insect, the dragonflies and the damselflies. All living odonates can be placed in one or the other of these groups except for just two species. The two species of the genus Epiophlebia, E. superstes in Japan and E. laidlawi in the Himalayas, are inhabitants of fast-flowing streams in montane rainforests. In overall appearance, they resemble a dragonfly (and are more closely related to dragonflies than damselflies) but they retain a number of primitive features shared with damselflies. Their wings are more like a damselfly’s, and like a damselfly they are able to raise their wings directly above their body so that the wings are together at rest. In dragonflies, the wings have a much smaller arc of movement, so when the insect is resting the wings are still held extending outwards. Like all other living odonates, Epiophlebia nymphs are aquatic. Like dragonflies, they have their gills internalised within the rectum* rather than external as in damselflies. However, unlike dragonflies, Epiophlebia nymphs do not jet-propel themselves through the water by firing water out of their rectum, but move about by the slower but more dignified method of crawling. Growth of Epiophlebia nymphs is slow and they can take up to eight years to reach maturity (Tabaru 1984).

*Yes, that’s right, dragonfly nymphs breathe through their arses.

Despite lacking a fossil record of their own (probably due to their montane habitat), Epiophlebia seem to have diverged from the dragonfly lineage very early on, at least as early as the Triassic, as indicated by the presence in that time of Odonata more closely related to dragonflies than Epiophlebia (Grimaldi & Engel 2005). The Japanese name for Epiophlebia superstes refers to their presumed age: they are mukashitombo, the “dragonfly from long ago”.

Systematics of Euepiproctophora

Characters (from Fleck et al. 2003; Grimaldi & Engel 2005): Frons bulbous; thoracic interpleural suture dorsally present; epiprocts enlarged in male to form appendage of claspers; naiad with rectal chamber lined with respiratory pads; postdiscoidal area on wing broader than area between MA and RP3/4 along posterior wing margin.

<==Euepiproctophora
    |--Epiophlebia [Epiophlebiidae, Epiophlebioidea, Epiophlebioptera]FB03
    |    |--E. laidlawiGE05
    |    `--E. superstes (Selys 1889)FB03
    `--+--Erichschmidtia Pritykina 1968 [Erichschmidtiidae]FB03
       `--Anisopteromorpha [Heterophlebioidea]FB03
            |--TrigonopteraFB03
            |    |  i. s.: Gondvanogomphus Schlüter & Hartung 1982 [Gondvanogomphidae]FB03
            |    |--StenophlebiopteraFB03
            |    `--AnisopteraFB03
            `--HeterophlebiopteraFB03
                 |--MyopophlebiidaeFB03
                 |    |--Paraplagiophlebia loneuxiFB03
                 |    `--Paraheterophlebia marci Nel & Henrotay 1993FB03
                 `--+--Liassophlebia [Liassophlebiidae]FB03
                    |    |--L. magnifica Tillyard 1925FB03
                    |    `--L. pseudomagnifica Whalley 1985RJ93
                    `--+--Juraheterophlebia Fleck, Bechly et al. 2003 [Juraheterophlebiidae]FB03
                       |    `--*J. kazakhstanensis Fleck, Bechly et al. 2003FB03
                       `--Heterophlebia [Heterophlebiidae]FB03
                            `--H. buckmani (Brodie 1849)FB03

*Type species of generic name indicated

References

[FB03] Fleck, G., G. Bechly, X. Martínez-Delclòs, E. Jarzembowski, R. Coram & A. Nel. 2003. Phylogeny and classification of the Stenophlebioptera (Odonata: Epiproctophora). Annales de la Societe Entomologique de France 39 (1): 55–93.

[GE05] Grimaldi, D., & M. S. Engel. 2005. Evolution of the Insects. Cambridge University Press: New York.

[RJ93] Ross, A. J., & E. A. Jarzembowski. 1993. Arthropoda (Hexapoda; Insecta). In: Benton, M. J. (ed.) The Fossil Record 2 pp. 363–426. Chapman & Hall: London.

Tabaru, N. 1984. Larval development of Epiophlebia superstes in Kyushu. Tombo 27: 27–31.