Journal of Threatened Taxa | www.threatenedtaxa.org | 26 August 2026 | 18(8): 29548–29551

ISSN 0974-7907 (Online) | ISSN 0974-7893 (Print)

https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.10706.18.8.29548-29551

#10706 | Received 30 May 2026 | Final received 26 June 2026 | Finally accepted 08 July 2026

New addition to the Odonata fauna of India: Gynacantha basiguttata Selys, 1882 (Odonata: Aeshnidae) from Arunachal Pradesh – a rectification

R. Mahesh ¹ , Rajesh Gopinath ² , Dattaprasad Sawant ³ , Gaurav Joshi ⁴ & Roshan Upadhaya ⁵

¹ National Centre for Biological Sciences, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560065, India.

² OIKOS (Eco-Club), BMS Institute of Technology & Management, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560119, India.

³ Grass Jewel Solutions and Shakambharee Clinic, Devgad, Sindhudurg, Maharashtra 416613, India.

⁴ Parwati Niwas, Jagat Mangla Colony, Haldwani, District Nainital, Uttarakhand 263139, India.

⁵ School of Education, RIMT University Mandi Gobindgarh Punjab 147301, India.

¹ maheshgreen96@gmail.com (corresponding author), ² dr.rajeshgopinathnair@gmail.com, ³ dattaprasad.101@gmail.com, ⁴ gauravjoshi.0416@gmail.com, ⁵ roshanupadhaya14@gmail.com

Editor: Anonymity requested. Date of publication: 26 August 2026 (online & print)

Citation: Mahesh, R., R. Gopinath, D. Sawant, G. Joshi & R. Upadhaya (2026). New addition to the Odonata fauna of India: Gynacantha basiguttata Selys, 1882 (Odonata: Aeshnidae) from Arunachal Pradesh – a rectification. Journal of Threatened Taxa 18(8): 29548–29551. https://doi.org/10.11609/jott.10706.18.8.29548-29551

Copyright: © Mahesh et al. 2026. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. JoTT allows unrestricted use, reproduction, and distribution of this article in any medium by providing adequate credit to the author(s) and the source of publication.

Funding: This study was self-funded, and a citizen science initiative by the authors. No fund has been received from any external agency for this study.

Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.

Acknowledgements: The authors would like to thank the staff of Forest Department at Namdapha National Park and Tiger Reserve (Arunachal Pradesh), for their valuable support and assistance during the fieldwork.

Abstract: The present study highlights the first record of Gynacantha basiguttata Selys, 1882 from India, and significantly indicates a range extension and extends its known geographical distribution. Also known as the Spoon-tailed Duskhawker, the species was identified by dorsal diagnostic morphological characters and spoon-shaped cerci with on-site photographs taken on 16 October 2024 alongside a road-side vegetation about the Miao-Vijaynagar road on a cloudy day at Namdapha National Park and Tiger Reserve, in Arunachal Pradesh, India. Based on photographic evidence for same date, Mahesh et al. (2026) also reported the first confirmed sighting (after 110 years) of Gynacantha khasiaca (MacLachlan, 1896), from Arunachal Pradesh with inclusion of 3 photographs. One of the images from it is herein reassigned to Gynacantha basiguttata Selys, 1882, thereby indicating a self-rectification.

Keywords: Biodiversity, diagnostic, distribution, dragonfly, morphological, Namdapha National Park, new record, range extension, Spoon-tailed Duskhawker.

Situated in Arunachal Pradesh (India), Namdapha National Park and Tiger Reserve with an elevation range of 200 m to over 4,571 m, supports diverse habitats inclusive of tropical rainforests, subtropical forests, and alpine meadows (Upadhaya et al. 2026). Benevolently, it supports a vast biodiversity including the dragonflies and damselflies (Mahesh et al. 2025). The global diversity of Odonata comprises 6,442 species across 693 genera (Paulson et al. 2026), with India being a habitat for 514 species and 27 subspecies from 159 genera and 19 families (Subramanian & Babu 2025). The species count for Arunachal Pradesh is 113 with 12 species being endemic to the state (Subramanian & Babu 2025). Recently with two new species being discovered, the count has increased to 115 (Joshi et al. 2026a). The genus Gynacantha Rambur, 1842, includes large-sized dragonflies with predominantly brown and blue-green colouration and crepuscular behaviour (Fraser 1936). This genus comprises 92 species globally, with 17 species documented in India (Joshi et al. 2026b). With current discovery, the tally rises to 18.

Scientific rectifications are critical towards ensuing accuracy and integrity of published records, when inadvertent errors are identified. Mahesh et al. (2026) in the form of a short communication, reported first confirmed sighting of Gynacantha khasiaca MacLachlan, 1896, in Arunachal Pradesh. Sighted on 16 October 2024 (after a gap of 110 years), the communication included three photographs. While two inserted photographs (Image 2) and (Image 3) correctly represents G. khasiaca, the third photograph (Image 4) constitutes a misidentification and is herein reassigned to Gynacantha basiguttata Selys, 1882. Notably, the sighting of G. basiguttata is the first verifiable photographic record from India, and the current manuscript highlights this finding, along with diagnostic details, as a rectification.

Materials and Methods

The photograph was taken with Sony Cyber-shot DSC-RX10 Mark IV camera, equipped with 24–600 mm f/2.4-4 ZEISS zoom lens, 20.1 MP 1-inch Exmor RS sensor and 0.03-second autofocus. The re-validation (for species identification) was confirmed with ID keys from literature (Selys-Longchamps 1882). No physical specimens were collected in strict adherence to forest norms, and compliance with the Indian Wildlife Protection (Amendment) Act, 2022.

Observations and findings

The discovery was made at an elevation of 600 m along the Miao-Vijaynagar road (Image 1) within the coordinates 27.46694⁰–27.48361⁰ N and 96.40027⁰ E. A single male individual of G. basiguttata was spotted perching while hanging vertically downward (Image 2) around 0810 h on a cloudy day within a densely shaded vegetated area.

The specimen was identified as G. basiguttata by following characteristics (Image 1–5): a) black t-mark on frons (Image 2,4); b) olivaceous green thorax without any stripes on lateral; c) dark brown pigmentation in subcostal space at base of both forewing and hindwing extending in medial space, triangle of wings traversed by 7–8 cells, anal triangle 3-celled, anal loop 10–11 celled (Image 3); d) prominent constrict of segment 3; e) segment 2 with greenish-yellow vertical mark on mid-dorsum with greenish-yellow annular mark at anterior end and bluish markings at posterior end (Image 2); f) segment 3 with dorsal greenish-yellow spots on mid part with a pair of dorso-lateral spots near posterior end; g) segments 4–8 with slightly oblique dorsal greenish-yellow markings on mid-part and a pair of small greenish-yellow spots at dorso-lateral aspect of posterior end (Image 2); h) cerci brownish-black, narrow at base, expanded at apex giving a spoon-like appearance in dorsal view, hairs on medal border (Image 6); epiproct short, blackish-brown, half the length of cerci, triangular, broad at base, progressively narrows towards apex, apex of epiproct slightly bulged (Image 6).

Scope of Discovery

Gynacantha basiguttata is listed as ‘Least Concern’ by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (Dow 2020). It was originally described from Philippines and is widely distributed across southeastern Asia, with verifiable records from China, Brunei, Indonesia, Peninsular Malaysia, Philippines, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam (Steinmann 1997; Dow 2020). Based on female specimens present in the Indian Museum, Fraser (1936) had stated the distribution of G. basiguttata from Bengal (India), Assam (India) Burma, Malaysia, Indo-China, and Sundaic Archipelago. This geographical distribution was also adopted by Subramanian (2009) and Mitra (2002). Fraser (1936) noted the species to be a very rare insect in Indian limits. As this record from India appeared highly doubtful, the species was excluded from the IUCN checklist of Indian Odonata (Dow 2020), checklist of South Asia (Kalkman et al. 2020) and from the checklist of India (Subramanian & Babu 2025). Further studies have since then followed the same taxonomic arrangement, including the recently updated Indian checklist detailing the distribution records of Gynacantha spp. (Sawant & Kambli 2023). Therefore, with this photographic record, the study presents strong evidence of G. basiguttata within the Indian limits and further recommends inclusion of the species in the checklist of India, the Indian subcontinent and South Asia.

Conclusion

Gynacantha basiguttata Selys, 1882 was historically mentioned in Odonata checklists, for its presence within Indian limits. However, as the inclusion was based solely on female specimens, it was subsequently removed from the recent checklists. The present study provides the first photographic evidence of a male individual from India, thereby supporting its inclusion in the checklists of India, the Indian subcontinent, and South Asia. The study details this discovery and derives it in the form of a self-rectification.

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