Griseosphinx marchandi Cadiou, 1996

There are 4 known species of Griseosphix and all member of the genus are found in oriental area. The most early described species is Griseosphinx preechari, it was described in 1990 based on materials from Thailand. G. marchandi is second species was new for science in the genus and it was described in 1996, Cadiou published G. marchandi based on a single female holotype that collected from Vietnam. Recently the species was recorded by Le Quynh Trang (Vietnam National Museum of Nature) from Cuc Phuong National Park, Ninh Binh Province. The recently recorded time of the species is April, 2016; it was collected in pristine forest in lowland area of Cuc Phuong. It came to the light trap from 6:00 to 9:00 pm.

Griseosphinx marchandi Cadiou, 1996

Small insects and spiders on forest leafs of Cuc Phuong National Park

Cuc Phuong is a National Park of North Vietnam, it is one of the most early national parks of the country. It is a low elevation forest and surrounded by limestone range.

It is not very far from Hanoi (about 120km) to the South and the forest in a very good condition. The national park located at border of Thanh Hoa and Ninh Binh Province. There is a tourist system in side of the National Park that you can stay over night, the road system in good condition so you can walk, ride bicycle, motor cycle or drive a car go through the Park without problem. On two sides of the main road, and in a summer days, there are a lot of insects that you can observe or taking photograph. The fauna of Cuc Phuong maybe similar to Ba Vi National Park however because it is a low land forest so it some how difference.

Insect/Spider watching is one of the most interesting thing in Cuc Phuong, however watching of birds, snails or amphibians... also is not bad option.

Zemeros sp. Riodinidae, photographed by Cuong Do 

Heliophorus sp. Lycaenidae, photographed by Cuong Do

Hesperiidae, photographed by Cuong Do

A small and colorful lotus/cricket (orthoptera), photographed by Cuong Do

A small wasp Ichneumonidae with white antenna and long ovipositor, photographed by Cuong Do

Large size ant with yellow metallic body and spiny abdomen, Polyrhachis sp. photographed by Cuong Do 

Funny shape of couple of flies are mating, photographed by Cuong Do

Spiny bug (Valentina hoffmanni, Reduviidae, Hepiptera/Heteroptera), photographed by Cuong Do 

A young bug, the wing not yet appear (Hemiptera/Heteroptera), photographed by Cuong Do

An exuviae of a cicada (Homoptera), photographed by Cuong Do

A small bug, Callitettix versicolor Cercopidae (Homoptera), photographed by Cuong Do 

A tumbling flower beetle, Mordellidae, photographed by Cuong Do

A small weevil, curculionidae beetle, photographed by Cuong Do

Two larva of Lepidoptera with brigten yellow stripes, photographed by Cuong Do

A spiny spider, photographed by Cuong Do

A spider nearly finish its lunch (a larvae), photographed by Cuong Do

A spiny leg spider, Oxyopes sp. (Oxyopidae) photographed by Cuong Do

Protosticta satoi (Asahina, 1997)

The first record of the species was made by Asahina in 1997. Based on a single female, which was collected from Tam Dao National Park, Asahina erected the new subspecies Protosticta khaosoidaoensis satoi. Later, in 2008, Van Tol studied specimens collected from Cuc Phuong National Park, Ninh Binh Province, Tam Dao National Park, Vinh Phuc Province, Vietnam and compared them to Protosticta beaumonti Wilson 1997 dark form from Guangxi, China (Wilson & Reels 2003). Based on the material from Cuc Phuong National Park, he concluded that “satoi” is a distinct species, differing from the Thailand species, P. khaosoidaoensis. Van Tol believed it possible that specimens from Cuc Phuong, the female from Tam Dao (Asahina, June 1997) and P. beaumonti Wilson, March 1997 from Hong Kong might belong to the same species but elected to establish P. satoi as a distinct species. It is possible, and perhaps most likely, that the dark form P. beaumonti from Guangxi sensu Wilson & Reels 2003 is indeed distinct from P. beaumonti Wilson, 1997 and is synonymous with P. satoi (Asahina, 1997).

It is small size Protosticta damselfly with tiny body and dark colour. The head is black with dark green compose eyes. The prothorax is nearly entry cream white, while the synthorax is mostly shining green black except two cream white markings at the border next to the abdomen and below the hind wings. All of the basal segments of three legs are cream-white, the femurs as well as tibias are also cream-white but darker. The wings are hyaline, little bit more than or proximal haft of the abdomen, with dark brown pterostigmas. The abdomen is dark brown with cream yellow or white markings; the 9^th segment is cream white. The anal appendages are dark brown. Male and female of the species are quite similar.

They are found at clean, running streams in good forests of high mountain area, the elevation is about more than 700m. The flying forms usually live very near the breeding sites with high humidity. Similar to other members of the family, they are slow flying insects and hide in shade of the forests.

 
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Emerging of Protosticta satoi, photographed by Cuong Do, the processing happens at a forest stream in Tam Dao National Park, Vinh Phuc Province

Chlorogomphus nakamurai Karube, 1995

This rare species has only been found in Cuc Phuong and Ba Vi National Parks, Vietnam, from where Haruki Karube described it in 1995. The dragonfly was named after Mr. Nakamura.

It is a beautiful and large-sized dragonfly; the male being deep black with bright yellow markings on the thorax and abdomen. The wings of the males are hyaline with the exception on the tips, while females have remarkable dark marking on their wings.

They are found at shaded, clear streams in the forest. The male usually patrols along the forest stream, looking for females, which only descend from the tree-canopies for mating and eggs laying. Once the female has found a suitable breeding side, the eggs are released directly to the surface of slow-flowing water.

The population of the species is stable in Cuc Phuong now, however no more record of its distribution in Ba Vi National Park, then it was accessed in VU level in IUCN Redlist because the limitation of distributed area.

Male of Chlorogomphus nakamurai, photographed by Cuong Do, Cuc Phuong National Park

Flying female of Chlorogomphus nakamurai, photographed by Cuong Do, Cuc Phuong National Park