Two additional species of Burmagomphus

Burmagomphus asahinai was described as recently as 2012 by Kosterin et al. from Cambodia. Dennis Farrell has shown its occurrence in Thailand (where in fact it had also been recorded by Asahina, who left it unidentified (see Kosterin et al.). Last year James Holden caught a female Burmagomphus in Cat Tien National Park that appeared to be this species, but as it concerned a single female, released after in hand photography, its identity was hard to prove. In June this year James returned to Cat Tien and was able to take a picture of a male that quite clearly shows B. asahinai. Caution must be taken with the identification of such species on the basis of photographs, but it is quite distinctively patterned. Karube has also recorded this species from Dalat. Its occurrence is hardly surprising, given its presence in neighboring Cambodia and Thailand.

Another species of Burmagomphus recently published (Karube, 2014) from Vietnam and, based on its two records from Tam Dao in the north and Lam Dong in the south apparently widespread, if uncommon, is B. divaricatus. I ran into a teneral male when checking a relatively open river near Cao Bang City in Cao Bang Province on May 20. Subsequent visits did not show up other specimens, so I will have to make due with the teneral specimen for publication here.

A hazy shot from some distance, but good enough, I would venture to say. Burmagomphus asahinai, male, June 2015. Photo by James Holden.

Female of B. asahinai. Summer 2014. Photo by James Holden. As can be seen from  the cluster of eggs she was ovipositing.

With its distinctive thoracic pattern and divaricate appendages, this male B. divaricatus could be identified without capture, which was lucky for it, given its fragile state.

Close up of the dorsum of the thorax.

And close-up of the divaricate inferior appendages.