Rhyacophila himachalensis, Kaur & Saini, 2012

Rhyacophila himachalensis sp. n. ( Figs 1–5)

Description. Average length of forewing 7.76 mm and that of antenna 4.85 mm. Color of body dark brown but wings, antenna, maxillary palps, labial palps and legs are light brown.

Male genitalia. Preanal appendage longer than dorsal apical lobe of segment IX and dorsal appendage of phallic apparatus longer than the paramere and rounded at apex and heavily sclerotized. The phallicata is tubular and paramere with tuft of thick setae apically. The dorsal edge of terminal segment of inferior appendage convex and basal segment of inferior appendage 3 times longer than the terminal segment. Two rows of spines present on the basal segment of inferior appendage ( Fig. 1). Preanal appendage oblong in dorsal view ( Fig. 2) and in ventral view terminal segment of inferior appendage with thick spines ( Fig. 5).

Differential diagnosis. This species is similar to R. dongkyapa SCHMID, 1970 but differs from it in followings. Dorsal apical lobe of segment IX curved downwards in R. himachalensis sp. n. ( Fig. 1) but in R. dongkyapa it is raised upward. Preanal appendage in lateral view rounded apically in R. himachalensis sp. n. ( Fig. 1) but in R. dongkyapa it is triangularly shaped. Preanal appendage in caudal view triangular shaped in R. dongkyapa but in R. himachalensis sp. n. it is truncate ( Fig. 4). In R. himachalensis sp. n. dorsal appendage of phallic apparatus rounded at apex and longer than paramere ( Fig. 1) but in R. dongkyapa it is triangular and shorter than paramere. In dorsal view dorsal appendage of phallic apparatus deeply indented ( Fig. 3) but it is with shallow indentation in R. dongkyapa . Paramere with thick tuft of setae and rounded apically in R. himachalensis sp. n. ( Fig. 1) whereas in R. dongkyapa tuft of setae not so thick and irregularly shaped. Terminal segment of inferior appendage almost rounded in shape ( Fig. 1) whereas in R. dongkyapa oblong shaped.

Material examined: Holotype: male, Himachal Pradesh, Banjar , 950m, 30.vi.2009 . Holotype is deposited in the Department of Zoology and Environmental Sciences, Punjabi University , Patiala , India. Paratype: 1 male, Uttarakhand, Mori , 1150m, 29.ix.2008 .

Female: Unknown

Derivato nominis: The species is named after the name of state in which type locality is situated.