First record of Vacupernius packeri (Allen) (Ephemeroptera: Leptohyphidae) from Colombia and South America with additional notes on egg morphology

Abstract

Se registra por primera vez el efemeróptero Vacupernius packeri en Colombia y América del Sur y se describe la morfología de sus huevos. La especie se identificó a partir de ninfas, subimagos e imagos procedentes de los departamentos de Tolima y Caldas, Colombia. Los huevos tienen forma oval, una cápsula polar y placas coriónicas poco superpuestas cerca al polo sin tapa. Además, se observó que presentan características similares a las del grupo Traverhyphes: placas coriónicas poco traslapadas y ausentes en el corion que rodea la cápsula polar. Es importante aclarar las relaciones entre los grupos Vacupernius y Traverhyphes en futuros análisis filogenéticos.

In the present study, we recorded for the first time the mayfly species Vacupernius packeri (Allen, 1967) in Colombia and South America describing the egg of this species. The identification was based on nymphs, subimagos, and imagos from Tolima and Caldas, Colombia. The eggs are ovalshaped, with one polar cap, and chorionic plates that are a little overlapped near the uncapped pole but absent near the capped pole. The egg has similar characteristics to the Traverhyphes group eggs, such as chorionic plates slightly overlapped and absent on the chorion surrounding the polar cap. Future phylogenetic analyses would be important to clarify the relationships between Vacupernius and the Traverhyphes group.