Kareninoides, Yang, Qiang, Makarkin, Vladimir N. & Ren, Dong, 2012

Yang, Qiang, Makarkin, Vladimir N. & Ren, Dong, 2012, New fossil Mesochrysopidae (Neuroptera) from the Mesozoic of China, Zootaxa 3597, pp. 1-14 : 6-7

Genus Kareninoides gen. nov.

Type species. Kareninoides lii gen. et sp. nov.

Etymology. Karenin- (from Karenina Martins-Neto, 1997, a genus-group name), and -oides (the Latin suffix meaning “resembling”, from the Greek eidos, resemblance), referring to the similarity of its venation to that of the genus Karenina. Gender: masculine.

Diagnosis. Most similar to Karenina but distinguished from it as well as from the other three genera with MP touching CuA (or connected by very short crossvein) (i.e., Allopterus J. Zhang, 1991 , Triangulochrysopa Nel et al., 2005 , Dryellina Martins-Neto et Rodrigues, 2009) by the following character states: forewing clearly elongate, with hind margin smoothly slightly curved [forewing nearly oval with hind margin strongly curved in Karenina]; hind wing length 0.9 of forewing (i.e., hind wing not shortened) [markedly shortened in Karenina (0.6–0.8 of forewing length); strongly shortened in Allopterus , Triangulochrysopa, Dryellina ]; in hind wing, both Banksian lines well developed, long [not developed in other four genera].

Species included. Two species of the Early Cretaceous (Barremian) of Eurasia: Kareninoides lii gen. et sp. nov. from the Yixian Formation of China, and K. inexpectus ( Nel et al. 2005) , comb. nov., from Las Hoyas, Spain (preliminary assignment).

Remarks. The new species described below cannot be assigned to any of existing genera of Mesochrysopidae . Its forewing MP touches CuA (i.e., the ‘X-crossing’ of Nel et al. 2005) as in genera of the subfamily Allopterinae (i.e., Karenina, Allopterus , Triangulochrysopa, Dryellina ). The prothorax of Kareninoides gen. nov. is elongate as in other Allopterinae. These two character states are considered as probable autapomorphies of this subfamily ( Nel et al. 2005). However, its hind wing is much more similar to that of Mesochrysopa Handlirsch, 1906 than to any genera of Allopterinae in the size, venation and the presence of Banksian lines. The new genus probably possesses the most generalized venation among Allopterinae (if it indeed belongs to this subfamily).