The Neuropterid Fauna of Dominican and Mexican Amber (Neuropterida: Megaloptera, Neuroptera) Author ENGEL, MICHAEL S. Author GRIMALDI, DAVID A. text American Museum Novitates 2007 2007-09-06 3587 1 60 http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.1206/0003-0082%282007%293587%5B1%3ATNFODA%5D2.0.CO%3B2 journal article 10.1206/0003-0082(2007)3587[1:TNFODA]2.0.CO;2 0003-0082 5388594 Spiloconis oediloma , new species figures 19 , 20 DIAGNOSIS: This species differs from S. glaesaria by the smaller forewing length and body size ( fig. 19 ), the swollen basal flagellomere that is distinctly larger than the following segments, and the r-rs crossvein distad to the fork of Rs (thereby meeting R 2+3 ) ( fig. 20 ). DESCRIPTION: Forewing length 1.85 mm ; total body length 1.38 mm . Compound eyes not reduced, more than one-half of head height; gena only slightly narrower than compound eye in lateral view (the gena is considerably more narrow than the compound eye in S. glaesaria ); head brown. Antenna 23- segmented, uniformly dark brown; scape twice as long as broad; basal flagellomere distinctly larger than following flagellomeres; segments with two whorls of setae. Thorax dark brown; legs light brown. Forewing with dark markings faint but as described for S. glaesaria ; distal setae on M near junction of basal rs-m and cua-m crossveins; basal rs-m crossvein shortly beyond R/Rs fork; distal rs-m on R 4+5 ; sc-r crossvein confluent with r-rs crossvein, r-rs distad fork or Rs and meeting R 2+3 ( fig. 20 ). HOLOTYPE : AMNH DR-14-1097 ( fig. 19 ), Miocene amber of the Dominican Republic. ETYMOLOGY: The specific epithet is derived from the Greek word oidaleos (meaning ‘‘swollen’’) and is a reference to the enlarged basal flagellar segment. FAMILY HEMEROBIIDAE LATREILLE The family Hemerobiidae , the brown lacewings, consists of approximately 560 species distributed throughout the world. Species occur on vegetation as both adults and larvae, presumably owing to the occurrence of their principle prey (e.g., Sternorrhyncha) in these habitats. Larvae are predaceous and while adults are presumed to be as well, little information is available on their feeding habits. Some adults have been discovered eating honeydew. Brown lacewings are not common in the fossil record (table 8), and a confident identity for those described in Baltic amber has yet to be achieved. The oldest hemerobiid is presently a single species from the Jurassic of Kazakhstan and shares at least a few synapomorphies typical of Tertiary and recent hemerobiids ( Oswald, 1993 ). Presently there are two species known in Dominican amber, one of which ( Notiobiella thaumasta Oswald ) appears to be more common than other Dominican neuropterid fossils. Figs. 17, 18. Spiloconis glaesaria Meinander. 17. Holotype (DR-10-59). 18. Newly discovered female (DR-14-1094). Fig. 19. Photomicrograph of holotype of Spiloconis oediloma , new species (DR-14-1097). The first amber hemerobiid discovered was of the Notiobiellinae and the nominate genus, in particular. The genus Notiobiella is widely distributed with species occurring in South and Central America, Africa, southeast Asia, Australia , and scattered Pacific islands. Of the approximately 36 described species, two occur today in the West Indies, and the fossil N. thaumasta is apparently most closely related to N. israeli from Cuba and Hispaniola ( Oswald, 1999 ). The second species is a new species of the Sympherobiinae . The species described below falls readily into the Sympherobiinae and Sympherobius except for one character (presence/absence of 4m-cu: see Comments below under the species). Sympherobius is Fig. 20. Holotype of Spiloconis oediloma , new species (DR-14-1097). TABLE 8 Named Fossil Hemerobiidae a (an unnamed species of Sympherobius is reported herein in Dominican amber)
Taxa Deposit Reference
Bothromicromus lachlani Scudder British Columbia Scudder, 1878
Cretomerobius disjunctus Ponomarenko Cretaceous, Mongolia Ponomarenko, 1992
Cretomerobius wehri Makarkin et al. Eocene, Washington Makarkin et al., 2003
Drepanepteryx oedobia Makarkin Miocene, Caucasus Makarkin, 1991
Drepanepteryx ramosa Makarkin Miocene, Caucasus Makarkin, 1991
Hemerobites antiquus Germar Baltic amber Germar, 1813
Hemerobius incertus Makarkin Miocene, Caucasus Makarkin, 1991
Hemerobius prohumulinus Makarkin Miocene, Caucasus Makarkin, 1991
Hemerobius tinctus Jarzembowski Eocene, England Jarzembowski, 1980
Megalomus caucasicus Makarkin Miocene, Caucasus Makarkin, 1991
Megalomus densistriatus Henriksen Eocene, Denmark Henriksen, 1922
Megalomus sikhotensis Makarkin Miocene, Caucasus Makarkin, 1991
Notiobiella thaumasta Oswald Dominican amber Oswald, 1999
Prochlanius resinatus (Hagen) Baltic amber Pictet-Baraban & Hagen, 1856 ; Krüger, 1923
Promegalomus anomalus Panfilov b Jurassic, Kazakhstan Panfilov, 1980
Prophlebonema resinata Krüger Baltic amber Krüger, 1923
Prospadobius moestus (Hagen) Baltic amber Pictet-Baraban & Hagen, 1856 ; Krüger, 1923
Wesmaelius mathewesi Makarkin et al. Eocene, Canada Makarkin et al., 2003
a Mesohemerobius jeholensis Ping (1928) , from the Cretaceous of China, was removed from Hemerobiidae and considered as Neuroptera incertae sedis by Makarkin et al. (2003) . b Originally placed in its own family, Promegalomidae , but transferred to Hemerobiidae by Oswald (1993) through synonymy of the junior family. widely distributed in tropical regions of North and South America and temperate regions of the former two continents as well as Africa, Asia, and Europe. Like Notiobiella , only two living species, Sympherobius insulanus Banks and S. zelenyi Alayo , are distributed in the West Indies, both on the island of Cuba ( Alayo, 1968 ; Oswald, 1988 ). Morphological terminology follows that of Oswald (1993) .