Revised concept of Chrysoperla mediterranea (Holzel), a green lacewing associated with conifers: courtship songs across 2800 kilometres of Europe (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae)

摘要

The Holarctic carnea-group of Chrysoperla green lacewings consists of numerous cryptic, sibling species, distinguished principally by vibrational courtship songs. A European member of this species-group, C. mediterranea (Holzel), was originally diagnosed by its dark green coloration, red band across the front of the head, narrow wings, minute basal dilation of the pretarsus and ecological association with pines. Here we describe its courtship and mating song, which uniquely distinguishes the species from all other members of the carnea-group in Europe. Males and females both produce a single type of song, characterized by a long train of short, closely spaced volleys and nearly constant carrier frequency. Mcasured song features are nearly invariant across a large geographical range that extends well outside that previously known for C. mediterranea. Principal components analysis confirms the uniqueness of the mediterranea song in comparison with five other sympatric song species of the carnea-group. Populations which show the mediterranea song phenotype do not necessarily retain all of the traditional morphological features of the species, particularly in eastern parts of the range. Specifically, the green coloration may be less intense, the wings broader and the pretarsal basal dilation larger, resulting in significant morphological overlap with other song species. Larval morphology and ecophysiology also fail to distinguish C. mediterranea from other song species. Based on unique song phenotype, however, we conclude that C. mediterranea is a valid biological species, which can also be recognized in museum collections when a suite of physical attributes is used.