Trichoptera investigation in northwest hunan province, People’s Republic of China, including descriptions of seven new species

Caddisfly larvae are aquatic insects that play a crucial role in the diverse ecological functions of river ecosystems. In this study, the authors document the caddisfly fauna in northwest Hunan from 2017 to 2022, presenting a checklist for Hunan Province. Prior to this research, only 22 caddisfly species were known in this region. Our collections revealed 73 species, including 67 new records for the province. Descriptions and illustrations of seven new species, Chimarra ventriserrata n. sp., Wormaldia shapingensis n. sp., Psychomyia longispina n. sp., Psychomyia paralonga n. sp., Oecetis unguiculata n. sp., Anisocentropus rotundatus n. sp., Agapetus aries n. sp., along with two noteworthy known species, Diplectrona cf. Kallirrhoe Malicky 2002 and Wormaldia unispina Sun, 1998 are provided. This elevates the total caddisfly fauna in Hunan Province to 89 species, surpassing the previous record fourfold.