Eorpa (genus)

Last updated

Eorpa
Temporal range: Ypresian
Eorpa elverumi SRUI 08-07-07 A Holotype.JPG
E. elverumi holotype
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Mecoptera
Family:† Eorpidae
Archibald, Mathewes, & Greenwood, 2013
Genus:† Eorpa
Archibald, Mathewes, & Greenwood, 2013
Species
  • E. elverumi
  • E. jurgeni
  • E. ypsipeda

Eorpidae is a small family of extinct insects in the scorpionfly order, Mecoptera, which contains a single genus, Eorpa. Three Eocene age species found in Western North America have been placed into the genus: E. elverumi, E. jurgeni, and E. ypsipeda.

Contents

History and classification

When described, Eorpidae was identified from a series of over thirty-five compression fossils in silty yellow to grayish shales recovered from the Ypresian Eocene Okanagan Highlands central and southern fossil sites in Washington state and British Columbia. Both the McAbee Fossil Beds near Cache Creek, BC and the Falklands site, near Falkland, BC have sediments belonging to the Kamloops group Tranquille Formation. The Quilchena site outcrop near Quilchena, BC exposes shale of the Coldwater Formation, also a member formation of the Kamloops group. The southernmost fossils are from several outcrops of the Klondike Mountain Formation in Republic, Washington. [1]

The family, genus, and species were first described by paleoentomologists S. Bruce Archibald, Rolf Mathews, and David Greenwood with their 2013 type description being published in the natural sciences journal Journal of Paleontology . [1] The family name is a combination of the genus name Eorpa and -"idae" following International Code of Zoological Nomenclature naming articles. The genus name is a combination of Eos, the Greek mythology goddess of dawn, a reference to the Eocene and "-orpa", a common suffix for mecopterans. The specific epithet elverumi is a patronym honoring John Elverum, finder of the type specimen. Similarly jurgeni is a patronym recognizing Jurgen Mathewes for years of collecting and research assistance at Quilchena. The type species E. ypsipeda has a specific epithet derived from the Greek word ypsipeda meaning "highlands", referring to the upland habitat of the family. [1]

E. elverumi was described from two fossil wings, the holotype SRUI 08-07-07 a&b and the paratype SRUI 08-02-01 a&b, both found in the Klondike Mountain formation. The fossils are preserved in the collections of the Stonerose Interpretive Center in Republic Washington. E. jurgeni was known from only the holotype wing, Q-0096, recovered from Quilchena and housed at Simon Fraser University. Unlike the other two species, E. ypsipeda was described from a series of over 35 fossils, both complete insects and isolated wings. All the full insect specimens were from the McAbee fossil site, while the wings are from McAbee and possibly Republic and the Falklands site. The specimens are housed at a number of different institutions including the Royal Tyrell Museum and the Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture. [1]

Description

As with all mecopteran members, eorpids possess an elongated rostrum and four elongated wings of nearly equal size, and uniquely a "Radial1" vein which almost reaches the apex of the wing. Eorpidae is distinguished from most other panorpoid families by five branches of the medial vein. The elongated abdomen as seen in Holcorpidae, and by the much less curved nature of "Radial1" vein seen in Dinopanorpidae separate Eorpidae from those two families. [1]

E. elverumi

Eorpa sp. possibly E. ypsipeda Eorpa sp SR 08-35-04 hypotype.jpg
Eorpa sp. possibly E. ypsipeda

E. elverumi has a forewing that is light in color to largely hyaline, with a darker tone to the pterostigmal region. The species is distinct from the sister species in that it lacks the 4th and 5th forks of the subcubital veins, which the other two species have. Also the wing has a number of crossveins that connect the Ms vein to the CuA. [1]

E. jurgeni

The hindwing of E. jurgeni is similar in outline to E. elverumi in that it is broad in depth, but unlike that species, it has a mottled color patterning to the wing. The cross-veination of the wing is also much less robust. Overall it is estimated the wing woulds have been between 17–18 mm (0.67–0.71 in) in length, but only 16 mm (0.63 in) in preserved length and is missing the apical portion. It is also the broadest hindwing, at 8 mm (0.31 in), of all the specimens studied for the type descriptions. The wing has an R1 vein which forks from the Radial vein more basally then in E. ypsipeda. [1]

E. ypsipeda

The E. ypsipeda forewings are distinct from E. elverumi in that they all have Sc4 and Sc5 forks on the Sc vein. There are no cross veins connecting either the Rs3 and Rs4 or the M3 and M4. The wings all have a notable patterning to the coloration and range from 15.5–16.5 mm (0.61–0.65 in) in length. The head and body have the general panorpiod body morphology, though the legs show fine annular hair growths. The wings have a generally dark coloration, with two lighter windows in the middle area the one closer to the apex being slightly chevron shaped and the base window more spot like. [1]

Related Research Articles

<i>Florissantia</i> (plant) Genus of plant in the mallow family (fossil)

Florissantia is an extinct genus of flowering plants in the Malvaceae subfamily Sterculioideae known from western North America and far eastern Asia. Flower, fruit, and pollen compression fossils have been found in formations ranging between the Early Eocene through to the Early Oligocene periods. The type species is Florissantia speirii and three additional species are known, Florissantia ashwillii, Florissantia quilchenensis, and Florissantia sikhote-alinensis.

<i>Tilia johnsoni</i> Extinct species of flowering plant

Tilia johnsoni is an extinct species of flowering plant in the family Malvaceae that, as a member of the genus Tilia, is related to modern lindens. The species is known from fossil leaves found in the early Eocene deposits of northern Washington state, United States and a similar aged formation in British Columbia, Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dinopanorpidae</span> Extinct family of insects

Dinopanorpidae is a small family of extinct insects in the order Mecoptera (scorpionflies) that contains two genera and seven species.

Dinopanorpa is an extinct monotypic genus of scorpionfly that contains the single species Dinopanorpa megarche and is the type genus of the extinct family Dinopanorpidae. The genus is known from a single hindwing specimen, the holotype, currently deposited in the collections of the National Museum of Natural History, as number "69173", and which was first described by Dr Theodore D.A. Cockerell in 1924. The name is a combination of the Greek deino meaning "terrible" or "monstrous" and "Panorpa", the type genus of Panorpidae the family in which Dinopanorpa was first placed.

<i>Ginkgo dissecta</i> Extinct species of tree

Ginkgo dissecta is an extinct ginkgo species in the family Ginkgoaceae described from a series of isolated fossil leaves. The species is known from Early Eocene sediments exposed in the province of British Columbia, Canada, and Washington, US. It is one of two Ginkgo species found at the Washington and British Columbia sites.

The Coldwater Beds are a geologic formation of the Okanagan Highlands in British Columbia, Canada. They preserve fossils dating back to the Ypresian stage of the Eocene period, or Wasatchian in the NALMA classification.

<i>Metanephrocerus</i> Extinct genus of flies

Metanephrocerus is an extinct genus of big-headed flies in the dipteran subfamily Protonephrocerinae, for which it is one of only two genera. The genus contains four described species, Metanephrocerus belgardeae, M. collini, M. groehni, and M. hoffeinsorum. Metanephrocerus is known from a group of Middle Eocene fossils which were found in Europe and a single early Eocene fossil from North America.

Wesmaelius mathewesi is an extinct species of lacewing in the neuropteran family Hemerobiidae known from an Eocene fossil found in North America

Cretomerobius is an extinct genus of lacewings in the neuropteran family Hemerobiidae known from fossils found in Asia. The genus currently contains a single species, the Aptian C. disjunctus.

<i>Holcorpa</i> Extinct genus of insects

Holcorpa is a genus of extinct insects in the scorpionfly order Mecoptera. Two Eocene age species found in Western North America were placed into the genus, H. dillhoffi and H. maculosa.

<i>Ulmus okanaganensis</i> Extinct species of elm

Ulmus okanaganensis is an extinct species of flowering plant in the family Ulmaceae related to the modern elms. The species is known from fossil leaves, flowers, and fruits found in the early Eocene deposits of northern Washington state, United States and similar aged formations in British Columbia, Canada.

<i>Betula leopoldae</i> Extinct species of flowering plant

Betula leopoldae is an extinct species of birch in the family Betulaceae. The species is known from fossil leaves, catkins, and inflorescences found in the early Eocene deposits of northern Washington state, United States, and similar aged formations in British Columbia, Canada. The species is placed as basal in Betula, either as a stem group species, or an early divergent species.

Paraconcavistylon is an extinct genus of flowering plant in the family Trochodendraceae comprises a single species, Paraconcavistylon wehrii. The genus is known from fossil fruits and leaves found in the early Eocene deposits of northern Washington state, United States, and southern British Columbia, Canada. The species was initially described as a member of the related extinct genus Concavistylon as "Concavistylon" wehrii, but subsequently moved to the new genus Paraconcavistylon in 2020 after additional study.

<i>Comptonia columbiana</i> Extinct species of sweet fern

Comptonia columbiana is an extinct species of sweet fern in the flowering plant family Myricaceae. The species is known from fossil leaves found in the early Eocene deposits of central to southern British Columbia, Canada, plus northern Washington state, United States, and, tentatively, the late Eocene of Southern Idaho and Earliest Oligocene of Oregon, United States.

<i>Palaeopsychops</i> Extinct genus of lacewings

Palaeopsychops is an extinct genus of lacewing in the moth lacewings family Ithonidae. The genus is known from Early Eocene fossils found in Europe, and North America and is composed of ten species. The ten species can be informally separated into two species groups based on veination of the forewings, the "European" and "North American" groups. When first described, the genus was placed in the family Psychopsidae, but later was moved to Polystoechotidae, which itself is now considered a subgroup of the moth lacewings.

<i>Fagus langevinii</i> Fossil species of beech tree

Fagus langevinii is an extinct species of beech in the family Fagaceae. The species is known from fossil fruits, nuts, pollen, and leaves found in the early Eocene deposits of South central British Columbia, and northern Washington state, United States.

<i>Plecia canadensis</i> Extinct species of flies

Plecia canadensis is an extinct species of Plecia in the fly family Bibionidae. The species is solely known from Early Eocene sediments exposed in central southern British Columbia. The species is one of twenty bibionid species described from the Eocene Okanagan Highlands paleofauna.

The paleofauna of the Eocene Okanagan Highlands consists of Early Eocene arthropods, vertebrates, plus rare nematodes and molluscs found in geological formations of the northwestern North American Eocene Okanagan Highlands. The highlands lake bed series' as a whole are considered one of the great Canadian Lagerstätten. The paleofauna represents that of a late Ypresian upland temperate ecosystem immediately after the Paleocene-Eocene thermal maximum, and before the increased cooling of the middle and late Eocene to Oligocene. The fossiliferous deposits of the region were noted as early as 1873, with small amounts of systematic work happening in the 1880-90s on British Columbian sites, and 1920-30s for Washington sites. Focus and more detailed descriptive work on the Okanagan Highlands site started in the last 1970's. Most of the highlands sites are preserved as compression-impression fossils in "shales", but also includes a rare permineralized biota and an amber biota.

<i>Ulmus chuchuanus</i> Extinct species of elm

Ulmus chuchuanus is an extinct species of flowering plant in the family Ulmaceae related to the modern elms. The species is known from fossil leaves and fruits found in early Eocene sites of northern Washington state, United States and central British Columbia, Canada.

<i>Alnus parvifolia</i> Extinct species of flowering plant

Alnus parvifolia is an extinct species of flowering plant in the family Betulaceae related to the modern birches. The species is known from fossil leaves and possible fruits found in early Eocene sites of northern Washington state, United States, and central British Columbia, Canada.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Archibald, SB; Mathewes, RW; Greenwood, DR (2013). "The Eocene apex of panorpoid scorpionfly family diversity". Journal of Paleontology. 87 (4): 677–695. doi:10.1666/12-129. S2CID   88292018.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.