Sinonemoptera tibetana Zheng & Liu, 2025, sp.nov.
Creators: name: Zheng, Yuchen
name: Liu, Xingyue
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Neuroptera
Nemopteridae
Sinonemoptera
Sinonemoptera tibetana

description: Sinonemoptera tibetana sp.nov.
(Figs 1B, 2B, D, G, H, 3E–H, 5f–j, 7E)
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: D61D45A8-6449-4FD6-828C-2664BD6F640E
Diagnosis: Head generally pale brown; antenna two-thirds of length of forewing; rostrum nearly as long as half of head width. Pronotum laterally with some short setae. Mesoprescutum, mesonotum, and mesoscutellum medially pale brown and laterally dark brown; mesoscutellum laterally with a few short setae; mesonotum with a few short coniform setae; mesoscutellum naked, posterior margin pale brown. Metanotum generally pale brown. Hindwing medially with an indistinct brown marking; distal part hardly dilated, with a brown marking, dilated part with subcostal and radial space hyaline. Male tergum 8 short in lateral view; sternum 9 distally pale brown. Male posterior gonocoxites 9 distally membranous in lateral view; gonostyli 11 digitiform in dorsal view. Gonapophyses 11 rounded on posterior margin.
Redescription
Size: Head width, 2.18–2.34 mm; forewing length, 14.18– 15.12 mm; hindwing length, 34.77–35.79 mm.
Head: Head generally pale brown. Vertex slightly raised, pale brown. Antenna two-thirds of length of forewing; scape and pedicel ventrally pale brown, dorsally dark brown; flagellum generally brown. Frons pale brown; anterior tentorial pit pale brown. Gena length nearly half of head width. Clypeus pale brown. Labrum pale brown to brown, distal margin truncate. Cardo pale brown, with some short setae. Stipe pale brown, distally with some long black setae. Maxillary palpus pale brown; labial palpus generally brown. Mandibles pale brown, elongate. Rostrum nearly as long as half of head width (Fig. 2B, D).
Thorax: Pronotum 0.5 times as long as wide, laterally with some short black setae; mostly dark brown, medially and laterally pale brown. Mesoprescutum, mesonotum, and mesoscutellum medially pale brown and laterally dark brown; mesoscutellum laterally with a few short setae; mesonotum with a few short coniform setae; mesoscutellum naked, posterior margin pale brown. Metanotum bald, generally pale brown (Fig. 2D). Meso- and metapleurae generally pale brown. Ventral thoracic setae sparce.
Legs: Slender, pale brown. Coxa pale brown, without marking; femur and tibia each with a pair of longitudinal brown stripes; tibial spurs short coniform; tarsomeres 2–4 with some stout setae ventrally; claws dark brown, slightly curved.
Wings: Forewing mostly hyaline, apex rounded. Pterostigma pale. Costal crossveins not forked; basal costal crossveins suffused with dark markings; subcostal area pale yellow; 13–14 presectoral crossveins present; RP with five branches; basal five mediocubital crossveins each suffused with a brown marking; first cup-a1 crossvein suffused with a marking (Figs 1B, 2G). Hindwing slender, nearly thrice as long as forewing; basally generally hyaline; basal c-sc and m-av crossveins each suffused with a brown marking; medially with an indistinct brown marking; pterostigma distinct, pale; distal part hardly dilated, with a brown marking, dilated part of sc-r and r-m cells hyaline; apical part hyaline (Figs 1B, 2H).
Abdomen: Dark brown; long, nearly twice as long as head plus thorax; male abdominal segments 3–8 each distally pale brown, longer than two-thirds width.
Male genitalia: Tergum 8 short in lateral view; sternum 9 bifurcated on distal half and with slender setae, distally pale brown; subtriangular in lateral view (Fig. 3E–H). Anterior gonocoxites 9 slender, not curved in lateral view; posterior gonocoxites 9 widely falcate, distally membranous in lateral view, wide and distally rounded in caudal view. Gonocoxites 11 narrowly arched, medially with a small prominence between the paired gonostyli 11; anterior membranous part of gonocoxites 11 with some long setae; gonostyli 11 shaped as a pair of upcurved short processes, digitiform in dorsal view. Gonapophyses 11 weakly sclerotized, nearly rectangular, posterior margin rounded in cephalic view; lateral membranous part of gonapophyses 11 with some long setae (Fig. 4F–J). Ectoproct ovoid in lateral view, distal margin with some long setae (Fig. 3E).
Type material: Holotype ♂, CHINA: Tibet, Nyingchi, Zayu County, Cawarong Township, 1800–1950 m, 1 June 2021, Hong Liu & Yuchen Zhao (IZCAS). Paratypes 31 ♂: 1 ♂, same information as holotype (IZCAS); 2 ♂, same locality as holotype, 11 July 2022, Hongbin Liang (IZCAS); 28 ♂, same locality as holotype, 28–29 June 2023, Yuchen Zheng & Baozhi Ge (CAU).
Distribution: China (Tibet).
Remarks: This new species can be distinguished readily from Sin. sinica by the relatively prominent eyes, the head generally pale brown, the rostrum relatively short (nearly equal to half of head width), the thorax medially pale brown in dorsal view, the hindwing distal part hardly dilated, the male tergum 8 short, the male distal sternum 9 pale brown, the male posterior gonocoxites 9 distally membranous in lateral view and wide in caudal view, the male gonostyli 11 digitiform in dorsal view, and the male gonapophyses 11 rounded on the posterior margin.
This new species is restricted to the Nujiang dry and hot river valley of Zayu section from Tibet, with medium elevation (1800 m), whereas Sin. sinica comb. nov. is restricted to the Nujiang dry and hot river valley of Baoshan to Lushui section from Yunnan, with lower elevation (750–880 m).
description: Published as part of Zheng, Yuchen & Liu, Xingyue, 2025, A mysterious treasure originated from Africa: evolutionary history of the endangered spoon-winged lacewings (Neuroptera: Nemopteridae: Nemopterinae) from China, pp. 1-23 in Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 203 on pages 8-10, DOI: 10.1093/zoolinnean/zlae026, http://zenodo.org/record/14802923