Burmagrion marijanmatoki Möstel, Schorr & Bechly, 2017, n. sp.
Creators: name: Möstel, Claudia
name: Schorr, Martin
name: Bechly, Günter
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2017
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Insecta
Odonata
Burmagrion
Burmagrion marijanmatoki

description: Burmagrion marijanmatoki n. sp.
Figures 1–10
Holotype. Specimen no. SMNS Bu-158, deposited in the amber collection of the paleontological department at the State Museum of Natural History in Stuttgart (Germany).
Diagnosis. This species can be discriminated from all known Recent and fossil odonates by the following combination of characters in the wing venation: wings strongly petiolated; ax1 and ax2 very widely separated; arculus slightly distal of ax2; ca. 15 postnodal cross-veins, of which only the most basal 3 are aligned and connected to incipient pseudo-transverse veins; pterostigmata 2.5–3.5 cells long and distinctly braced; no lestine oblique vein; no intercalary veins except IR1 and IR2; discoidal cell basally closed, elongate, free, and distally acute; subdiscoidal cell elongate and free; CuP-crossing at origin of AA+CuA; about 6 cells between subnodus and origin of RP2, and 3 cells between origins of RP2 and IR1; only one row of cells between CuA and hind margin.
Description. A small piece of clear Burmite amber (27x19 x 6 mm) with numerous inclusions of tiny water droplets or air bubbles, containing a female damselfly with body fragment (Figure 1) and two complete wings (Figures 2–5), as well as large fragments of three further wings (Figures 6–9), which clearly belong to another specimen of the same species. The main syninclusion is part of an unidentified angiosperm leaf of asymmetrical lanceolate shape and very dark color (Figure 6).
Body. Head, prothorax, and legs missing. Only part of pterothorax preserved, with a single attached pair of wings. Abdomen 15.4 mm long without male secondary genital apparatus, but with ovipositor pouch. Terminal appendages very short and inconspicious.
Forewing (Figures 2 and 3). Hyaline without color pattern expect for dark pterostigma, which is 2.5 cells long and distinctly braced with oblique stigmal brace vein. Irregular microstructure of pterostigmata (not star-shaped) (Figure 11). Wings strongly petiolated (petiolus 3.2 mm long). Length from nodus to apex approx. 10 mm, total wing length 14.9 mm, maximum width 3.6 mm. Subnodus opposite IR2. Basal branching of RP (midfork) not recessed. Nodal and subnodal cross-veins oblique. Only the two primary antenodal cross-veins ax1 and ax2 that are widely separated for 1.7 mm. Arculus slightly distal of ax2 and complete: basal discoidal cross-vein forms posterior arculus, discoidal cell closed basally. No uparching of MP after discoidal cell. Postnodal and postsubnodal cross-veins basally aligned, distally not aligned. CuA fuses with hind margin basal of discoidal cell. 7 to 9 cells between CuA and MP. Only a single row of cells between CuA and hind margin (cubito-anal field reduced). Only a single row of cells between all longitudinal veins, thus no intercalary veins (except IR1 and IR2). No lestine oblique vein. Pseudo-transverse veins weakly developed in the mid-third of wing, but absent distally.
Hindwing (Figures 4 and 5). Wing venation is very similar to that of the forewing with the following exceptions: Pterostigmata 3.5 cells long. Length from nodus to apex 10.5 mm, total wing length 14.8 mm, maximum width 3.4 mm. Petiolus 2.4 mm long. Discoidal cell elongated (0.8 mm long), undivided, basally closed, with oblique distal side MAb. Subdiscoidal cell long and undivided. 21 postnodal cross-veins and 23 postsubnodal cross-veins, of which only the most basal 3 are aligned. RP2 originates 6 cells distal of IR2, and IR1 3 cells distal of RP2.
Type locality and horizon. Burmese amber / Burmite (Hukawng Valley, Kachin State, Myanmar). Mid- Cretaceous: earliest Cenomanian.
Etymology. A noun in the genitive case, named after Mr. Marijan Matok (born 28th March 1972 in Ulm- Söflingen, Germany), in appreciation of his material support through the International Dragonfly Fund.
description: Published as part of Möstel, Claudia, Schorr, Martin & Bechly, Günter, 2017, A new stem-coenagrionoid genus of damselflies (Odonata: Zygoptera) from mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber, pp. 177-186 in Zootaxa 4243 (1) on pages 179-182, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4243.1.9, http://zenodo.org/record/398768