Pseudoameropterus, Jepson & Makarkin, 2023

Jepson, James E. & Makarkin, Vladimir N., 2023, Fossil Neuropterida (Insecta: Neuroptera and Raphidioptera) from the middle Eocene Kishenehn Formation, Montana, USA, Zootaxa 5306 (4), pp. 427-444 : 428-429

Genus Pseudoameropterus gen. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:E5FAC79E-0647-404E-92F5-4577429C98AD

Type and only species. Pseudoameropterus ambiguus gen. et sp. nov.

Etymology. From the Greek pseudos, false, and Ameropterus , a genus-group name of Ascalaphidae . Gender masculine.

Diagnosis. May be distinguished from other genera by a set of the following hind wing characters: RP1 profusely branched; hypostigmal cell relatively long; MP and CuA spaces relatively narrow; CuA long and incurved; branches of CuA and MP interlinked by only one row of crossveins.

Remarks. The status of Ascalaphidae as a family is an area of debate. Many studies based on morphology only have recovered a monophyletic Ascalaphidae closely related to Myrmeleontidae (e.g., Aspöck et al. 2001; Aspöck & Aspöck 2008). However, studies that have included molecular data in addition to morphology have recovered conflicting trees supporting monophyly of both Ascalaphidae and Myrmeleontidae , or showing a paraphyletic relationship of Ascalaphidae with respect to Myrmeleontidae (see Machado et al. 2018; Winterton et al. 2018; Jones 2019 for review). Recently, phylogenomic studies by Machado et al. (2018) and Winterton et al. (2018) recovered Ascalaphidae and Myrmeleontidae as being paraphyletic with respect to each other, this prompted Machado et al. (2018) to synonymize Ascalaphidae with Myrmeleontidae , dividing the family into four subfamilies and 17 tribes. But the family status of Ascalaphidae is still debated ( Jones 2019; Cai et al. 2023). Here we follow Cai et al. (2023) and consider Ascalaphidae to be retained as a family with the inclusion of Stilbopteryginae as a subfamily.

The long and more or less strongly incurved CuA in the hind wing as found in Pseudoameropterus gen. nov. is present in several genera of Ascalaphidae : all genera of Stilbopteryginae ( Stilbopteryx Newman, 1838 and Aeropteryx Riek, 1968 ) and Albardiinae ( Albardia van der Weele, 1903 ), and most genera of Ululodinae (i.e., Ameropterus Esben-Petersen, 1922 , Cordulecerus Rambur, 1842 and Ululodes Currie in Smith, 1900). Interestingly, all these taxa are now distributed in the Americas (Albardiinae, Ululodinae) or Australia (Stilbopteryginae).

The hind wing venation of the new genus is most similar to that of Ameropterus , especially e.g. A. trivialis ( Gerstaecker, 1888) and A. mexicanus (van der Weele, 1908) (see Penny 2002: Figs 14, 16). The genus is distributed from southern Mexico in the north to Argentina in the south. However, Pseudoameropterus gen. nov. differs from that genus in that RP1 is more proximally and profusely branched, which is branched more distally in Ameropterus (see van der Weele 1909: Figs 83–85; Penny 2002: Figs 12–15). All species of Cordulecerus (except Cordulecerus praecellens ( Gerstaecker, 1885)) differ from Pseudoameropterus ambiguus sp. nov. by the hind wings being strongly broadened proximally (see van der Weele 1909: Figs 98–112, 115, 116; Penny 1982: Fig. 11; Ardila-Camacho et al. 2019: Fig. 9). The species of Ululodes differ from the new species by the presence of a longitudinal crossvein connecting crossveins between RA/Sc+RA and RP below the pterostigma (see van der Weele 1909: Figs 59–68, 73–76; Penny 2002: Figs 22–26).

However, it is possible that the new genus belongs to Stilbopteryginae or Albardiinae. The hind wing venation of Aeropteryx Riek, 1968 (Stilbopteryginae) and Pseudoameropterus gen. nov. are very similar, including the profusely branched RP1 (see Riek 1968: Pl. 1). Moreover, a new undescribed ascalaphid species from the Green River Formation, the venation of which is most similar to that of Pseudoameropterus ambiguus sp. nov., possesses entire eyes characteristic of Stilbopteryginae and Albardiinae, while eyes are divided in Ululodinae. But the true subfamilial affinity of Pseudoameropterus gen. nov. may only be determined when more complete material is found.