A NEW SPECIES OF THE GENUS ANDIPERLA (PLECOPTERA, GRIPOPTERYGIDAE) FROM THE GLACIERS OF SOUTHERN PATAGONIA AND OBSERVATIONS ON ITS BIOLOGY AND GENOME.

PABLO PESSACQ; RAMIRO TINTORELLI; JAVIER MUZON; RONALD KÜHNLEIN; DANIEL BEA; ROLANDO RIVERA-POMAR

Denver, Colorado.

Simposio; Entomology 2017; 2017

Entomological Society of America

Andiperla willinki Aubert (1956) is the unique species of the genus Andiperla. It was defined by larva and adults from Upsala glacier, in Argentinean Patagonia. It is the only known insect that completes its life cycle in glaciers and reports on its biology are scarce. Although it was never reported in other glaciers, its presence was suspected based on reports from rangers in Los Glaciares National Park. We collected several larva and adults of the genus Andiperla in Perito Moreno glacier. Based on the original description and photographs of type material we concluded that the specimens collected represent a new species. The individuals of the Moreno glacier can be distinguished from A. willinki by the male abdominal segment X, which is conical on its distal part and ending in a well developed, ventrally directed spine, while in A. willinki it is truncated, with posterior margin straight. Further comparisons of larva, briefly described by Aubert (1956) may reveal additional morphological differences. We observed that the larvae lives in small cavities in the streams that run on the ice surface, feeding on detritus, while the adults crawl on the ice likely searching for mating and food. We determined the coding sequence of the genes cytochrome oxidase I (COI), histone-3A and 18S rRNA from the new species and observed significant differences to the Gene Bank sequences of H3A and 18S rRNA attributed to the genus Andiperla. An analysis of the transcriptome will be presented to link gene function to the glacier environment.