Cretaconiopteryx grandis Liu & Lu 2017
Creators: name: Li, Hongyu
name: Wang, Bo
name: Liu, Xingyue
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2019
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Neuroptera
Coniopterygidae
Cretaconiopteryx
Cretaconiopteryx grandis

description: Cretaconiopteryx grandis Liu & Lu, 2017
(Figs. 1–3)
Cretaconiopteryx grandis Liu & Lu, 2017: 382.
Description of male. Body (Figs. 1A, B) length 4.3 mm; integument dark brown.
Head (Fig. 1C) nearly as long as wide, with prominent compound eyes; frons well-sclerotized between antennal insertions; gena elongated; vertex slightly domed. Antenna with scape stouter and longer than pedicel and flagellomeres, about twice as long as wide; pedicel nearly as long as wide; flagellum with 30 flagellomeres, each flagellomere subcylindrical, moderately setose, nearly as long as wide, but terminal flagellomere bullet-shaped, over three times longer than wide; mouthparts chewing mandibulate; terminal maxillary palpomere elongate elliptical, much longer and broader than preceding palpomeres; terminal labial palpomere elongate elliptical, much longer and broader than preceding palpomeres.
Prothorax slightly narrower than meso- and metathorax and slightly longer than wide. Legs slender, with numerous, short setae; pro- and mesotibiae nearly equal in length to pro- and mesofemora; metatibia longer than metafemur; profemur nearly equal in length to mesofemur but shorter than metafemur; protibia also nearly equal in length to mesotibia but shorter than metatibia; tarsus 5-segmented; tarsomere 1 longest, nearly equal to combined length of remaining tarsomeres; tarsomere 4 (Fig. 1D) distally expanded and flattened, marginally with a row of setae; pretarsal claws short, simple; arolium absent.
Forewing (Figs. 1E, F, 2A, C) length 6.0 mm; membrane hyaline, slightly brownish throughout, with six distinct, ovoid, dark spots, respectively located at cell between RA and RP+MA, RP and MA, RP+MA and MP, MP1 and MP2, MP and CuA (or reaching MP slightly), CuP and A1; costal space proximally with two costal crossveins and several costal crossveins on distal half; Sc almost parallel to costal margin, terminally abruptly bending toward RA (or alternatively interpreted as connected by a crossvein with RA); two sc-r, one sc-ra present at distal 1/4 of subcostal space; RA distally curved posteriad and connected with anteriorly curved RP forming a loop; one or two ra-rp present distad sc-ra; origin of RP+MA near wing base; RP simple, distally curved anteriad; MA simple and curved posteriad slightly; one rp-ma present distad ra-rp; MP bifurcated at about distal 1/3; one or two r-mp, two rp+ma-mp and one ma-mp present; one mp1-mp2 present; RP/MA fork and MP1/MP2 fork generally similar in length, shape and size; stem of M nearly touching Cu; Cu fork near wing base; CuA straight and simple; CuP simple, proximally slightly protruding proximally in right forewing but not zig-zagged or protruding in left forewing (probably due to preservation condition); one mp-cua present on right forewing, absent on left forewing; one mp2-cua present on right forewing; two cua-cup present; A1 simple; three cup-a1 present; A2 with a long, distally bifurcated anterior branch and a short, strongly curved posterior branch; one a1-a2 present; distal-most crossveins among longitudinal veins from RA to A2 arrange into a gradate series; marginal setae present, and those on posterior margin much more widely spaced than those on costal margin.
Hind wing (Figs. 2B, D) length 4.2 mm, similar to forewing, while immaculate; costal space proximally with two costal crossveins and at least five costal crossveins on distal half; Sc largely parallel to costal margin, terminally abruptly bending toward RA (or alternatively interpreted as connected by a crossvein with RA); one sc-ra present; RA distally slightly curved posteriad; two ra-rp+ma and one ra-rp present; origin of RP+MA near wing base; RP simple, distally feebly curved anteriad; MA simple, slightly curved posteriad; one rp-ma present distad ra-rp; MP bifurcated at about distal 1/3; at least one rp+ma-mp and one ma-mp present; one mp1-mp2 present; RA/MA fork and MP1/MP2 fork generally similar in shape and size, while length of former fork is slightly longer than that of latter one; Cu forked near wing base; two mp-cua and one mp2-cua present; CuA and CuP both simple and slightly curved anteriad; four cua-cup present; A1 simple, slightly curved anteriad; two cup-a1 present; two a1-a2 present; A2 distally bifurcated, with a short crossvein between stem of A2 and posterior margin; distal-most crossveins among longitudinal veins from RA to CuA arranged into a gradate series; marginal setae present, and those on posterior margin much more widely spaced than those on costal margin.
Abdomen (Figs. 1G, 3A, B) with plicature invisible. Genital segments largely preserved except tergum 9. Putative ectoproct unpaired, broad and rounded, slightly domed in dorsal view. Sternum 9 with short and rectangular, medially longitudinally elevated (probably not natural condition). Hypandrium glabrous, present as a posteiorly expanded, subtriangular sclerite, which is bifid posteriorly and posterolaterally bears a pair of lobes, each lobe rounded distally. Gonocoxites 9 present as a pair of large, external sclerites, which are probably connected with tergum 9 proximally; distal half of gonocoxite 9 distinctly expanded into a subquadrate lobe, medially curved, with a secondary elevated lobe with sparse setae on inner surface, distal margin densely setose. Putative gonapophyses 10 [(= parameres in Meinander (1972)] at least with posterior part paired, slender, laterally curved, and slightly inflated into an obtuse tip. Putative gonostyli 10 (= penis) present as a long, narrow sclerite, slightly narrowed posteriad; apex modified into an ovoid structure, with a pair of tiny subquadrate processes at tip and a hole in dorsal view, laterally with slightly sclerotized expansion and internally with paired slender rods.
Material examined. Holotype, CAM BA-0008, female, it is polished in the form of a nearly elliptical transparent cabochon, with length×width about 10.2×8.0 mm, height about 5.3 mm, Lowermost Cenomanian, Tanai Village, Hukawng Valley, northern Myanmar. NIGP 171206, amber piece with a complete male adult and a psocid, a beetle, a cockroach, a caddisfly, four aphids, a spider, and a scorpion. It is polished in the form of ovoid cabochon, transparent, with length×width about 37.52× 22.01 mm, height about 6.30 mm, Lowermost Cenomanian, Tanai Village, Hukawang Valley, northern Myanmar.
description: Published as part of Li, Hongyu, Wang, Bo & Liu, Xingyue, 2019, First description of the male of Cretaconiopteryx grandis Liu & Lu, 2017 (Neuroptera: Coniopterygidae) from the Cretaceous Burmese amber, pp. 482-490 in Zootaxa 4674 (4) on pages 483-485, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4674.4.7, http://zenodo.org/record/3465058