Two new species of Protosticta Selys, 1885 (Odonata: Zygoptera: Platystictidae) from the Western Ghats, India

We erect two new species of damselflies from the Western Ghats Biodiversity Hotspot, Protosticta sanguinithorax sp. nov. from Kerala and P. shambhaveei sp. nov. from Maharashtra, India. Morphologically, these species show close affinity with P. sanguinostigma Fraser, 1922, an endemic species of the Western Ghats; however, they are distinguished by their ground colouration, unique features in their prothoraxes, caudal appendages, and accessory genitalia.

We also establish a significant genetic distance, based on the COI gene, between these newly erected Protosticta species and P. sanguinostigma. We present an updated taxonomic key to the males of Protosticta species in the Western Ghats, incorporating newly available diagnostic information.