Turanophlebia vitimensis, Fleck & Bechly & Martínez-Delclòs & Jarzembowski & Nel, 2004

Fleck, Günther, Bechly, Günter, Martínez-Delclòs, Xavier, Jarzembowski, Edmund A. & Nel, André, 2004, A revision of the Upper Jurassic-Lower Cretaceous dragonfly family Tarsophlebiidae, with a discussion on the phylogenetic positions of the Tarsophlebiidae and Sieblosiidae (Insecta, Odonatoptera, Panodonata), Geodiversitas 26 (1), pp. 33-60 : 46-48

Turanophlebia vitimensis n. sp. ( Fig. 7 )

HOLOTYPE. — Specimen No. 2361/1, part and counterpart ( PIN).

ETYMOLOGY. — Named after Vitim River.

GEOLOGICAL SETTING. — Lower Cretaceous, Zaza Formation, Neocomian or Barremian-Aptian, Romanovka, right side of Vitim River downstream Romanovka village, Eravna district, Buryat Republic, Russia (Zherikhin pers. comm.).

DIAGNOSIS. — T. vitimensis n. sp. differs from all other Turanophlebia species in: 1) presence of nine to 10 rows of cells in the cubito-anal area between CuA and posterior wing margin; 2) CuA reaching posterior wing margin distinctly distal of nodus level, as in T. neckini n. comb.; 3) oblique vein “O” four cells distal of base of RP2. It shares with T. mongolica n. sp. the presence of two or more rows of cells in postdiscoidal area, instead of one in other Turanophlebia species ; and 4) base of RP3/4 closer to nodus than to arculus.

DESCRIPTION

Part and counterpart of a body with the bases of the two fore wings and a nearly complete hind wing. Wings hyaline.

Preserved part of hind wing 20.0 mm long; hind wing probably about 47.0 mm long; 10.1 mm wide; distance from base to arculus, about 7.0 mm; from arculus to nodus, 15.0 mm; median and submedian areas free of cross-veins; CuP not preserved; only primary antenodal brace Ax2 preserved, stronger than secondary antenodal cross-veins; Ax2 about 6.0 mm from wing base; arculus distinctly distal of Ax2 (0.6 mm); 14 secondary antenodal cross-veins distal of Ax2, not aligned with the cross-veins of second rank between ScP and RA; more than 10 cross-veins in the area between RA and RP, between arculus and nodus; a long “gap” without cross-veins between arculus and RP3/ 4 in the area between RP and MA; MP + CuA not preserved basal of its fusion with MAb; long fusion between MAb and MP + CuA before the separation between CuA and MP, 2.5 mm long, characteristic of the Tarsophlebiidae ; MA, MAb, MP + CuA + MAb and basal free part of CuA well aligned in arculus, as in other Tarsophlebiidae ; discoidal space pro-

E

B

D

C

bably basally opened; presence of the two-celled “tarsophlebiid pseudo-discoidal space” just distal of MAb in the postdiscoidal area; subdiscoidal area divided into two cells by a cross-vein; AA without any strong posterior branches; anal area with three rows of cells; posterior wing margin rounded; AA reaching free part of CuA at sharp angle; no CuAb; CuA with no strong posterior branches; nine or 10 rows of small cells between CuA and posterior wing margin; “antero-CuA” and “postero-CuA” veins elongate; CuA reaching posterior wing margin distinctly distal of nodus level; area between MP and CuA with one row of cells in its basal part but rapidly greatly widened in its distal part; postdiscoidal area with three rows of cells in its basal part, narrowed with two rows in its mid part, and slightly widened distally, with a distal secondary longitudinal straight vein closely parallel to MA and five or six rows of cells between MA and MP near posterior wing margin; bases of RP3/4 and IR2 between arculus and nodus, nearer to nodus, 5.5 mm from nodus; nodal Cr and subnodus oblique; base of RP2 aligned with subnodus; vein “O” oblique, four cells distal of base of RP2; numerous Bq crossveins; numerous postnodal cross-veins between C and RA (15 of them being preserved), not aligned with the numerous postsubnodal cross-veins; base of IR1 only six to eight cells distal of that of RP2; IR1 well defined, basally zigzagged but straighter distally; area between RP2 and IR2 widened distally; area between IR2 and RP3/4 distally widened; “postero-IR2” vein elongate; area between RP3/4 and MA distally widened; “antero-MA” and “postero-MA” veins elongate.

Preserved part of fore wing 17.0 mm long; 6.7 mm wide (in its preserved part); distance from base to arculus, 7.0 mm; median and submedian areas free of cross-veins; CuP distinctly curved; Ax1 and Ax2 preserved, only slightly stronger than the secondary antenodal cross-veins; two secondary antenodals basal of Ax1 and one between Ax1 and Ax2; arculus between Ax1 and Ax2; numerous secondary antenodal cross-veins distal from Ax2, not aligned with the cross-veins of second rank between ScP and RA; numerous cross-veins in the area between RA and RP, between arculus and nodus; a long “gap” without cross-veins between arculus and RP3/ 4 in the area between RP and MA; MP + CuA strongly curved just before its fusion with MAb; presence of a very short fusion between MAb and MP + CuA before CuA separates from MP, better preserved on the right fore wing; MA, MAb, MP + CuA + MAb and basal free part of CuA well aligned in arculus, as in other Tarsophlebiidae ; discoidal space basally opened; subdiscoidal area divided into two cells by a cross-vein; AA without any strong posterior branches; anal area with two rows of cells; AA reaching free part of CuA at very sharp angle; no CuAb; CuA with no strong posterior branches; more than seven rows of small cells in cubito-anal area; area between MP and CuA with one row of cells in its basal part but rapidly widened in its distal part; postdiscoidal area with three rows of cells in its basal half, narrowed with two rows in its mid part.

Thorax thin and elongate. Metathoracic leg well preserved, very long, as long as that of Tarsophlebia eximia , femora distinctly shorter than tibia, tibia 12.5 mm long, tarsus 8.5 mm long; tarsus very long and slender, with three brakes, probably corresponding to three visible tarsomeres.

Abdomen long and slender, about 45.0 mm long and 3.7 mm wide, the widest part being at the level of segment eight; presence of two lateral carinae on the posterior part of the abdominal segments. One pair of well separated anal appendages visible, of very particular shape, basally strongly sclerotized, with high humps and a nonsclerotized paddle-like distal part. No median anal appendage visible. The presence of only a pair of anal appendages shows that this specimen is a male, as the female Tarsophlebiidae have a very long ovipositor (Nel et al. 1993).

DISCUSSION

Because of the structures of the anal area, the basally opened discoidal space, the strongly curved MP + Cu, the long common stem MAb + MP + CuA, the sharp angle between MP + Cu and MAb and the presence of a “tarsophlebiid pseudodiscoidal space”, this fossil is clearly a tarsophlebiid hind wing. It can be attributed to the genus Turanophlebia rather than to Tarsophlebia , because of its broad cubito-anal area, long IR1, and numerous postnodal and antenodal cross-veins.

Figures

FIG. 7. — Turanophlebia vitimensis n. sp., holotype (PIN 2361/1); A, imprint; B, right fore wing; C, left fore wing; D, left hind wing; E, F, apex of the abdomen; E, counterimprint; F, imprint. Scale bars: A, 10 mm; B, D-F, 5 mm; C, 3 mm.