Protosialis casca

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Protosialis casca
Temporal range: Burdigalian
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Scientific classification Red Pencil Icon.png
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Insecta
Order: Megaloptera
Family: Sialidae
Genus: Protosialis
Species:
†P. casca
Binomial name
†Protosialis casca
Engel & Grimaldi, 2007
Synonyms

Sialis (Protosialis) casca

Protosialis casca is an extinct species of alderfly in the Sialidae subfamily Sialinae. [1] The species is solely known from the early Miocene, Burdigalian stage, Dominican amber deposits on the island of Hispaniola. [2] Protosialis casca is one of only two known alderfly species present in the West Indies, the only other species is the living Protosialis bifasciata native to Cuba. [1]

Contents

History and classification

The species is known only from the holotype, number "Mact 2090", which is a single male specimen currently residing in the private collection owned by Ettore Morone of Turin, Italy, [1] [3] and was first studied by Michael Engel and David Grimaldi. Engel and Grimaldi's 2007 type description paper was published in the journal American Museum Novitates . [1] The specific epithet "casca" was derived by the authors from the Latin cascus , which translates to "old" in reference to the age of the specimen. [1]

When first described P. casca was named Sialis (Protosialis) casca by Engel and Grimaldi. They used the alderfly classification system put forth by Dr. Michael Whiting in his 1994 paper on the phylogeny of North American alderflies which treated Protosialis as a subgenus of Sialis . Currently most taxonomists treat Protosialis as a separate genus from Sialis [4] making this species Protosialis casca and Sialis (Protosialis) casca a synonym. [5]

Description

The holotype of Protosialis casca is 7.6 millimetres (0.30 in) in length with a forewing length of between 7.7–8.4 millimetres (0.30–0.33 in). The forewing length cannot be determined more precisely due to the apical portions of the wings being missing. [1] The orange and black coloration of the head and pronotum combined with the reduced number of crossveins in the costal region of the forewing are unique to the genus Protosialis. The legs display black and white color patterning, with the area of the protibia and mesotibia white and the rest of the leg is black. [1] The wing membranes are overall a dusky brownish gray, with veins a darker brow to black. The abdomen, light brown in color, is bent downwards near the midpoint and slightly distended. [1]

Related Research Articles

Neuroptera Order of insects

The insect order Neuroptera, or net-winged insects, includes the lacewings, mantidflies, antlions, and their relatives. The order consists of some 6,000 species. Neuroptera can be grouped together with the Megaloptera and Raphidioptera in the unranked taxon Neuropterida including: alderflies, fishflies, dobsonflies, and snakeflies.

Alderfly Family of insects

Alderflies are megalopteran insects of the family Sialidae. They are closely related to the dobsonflies and fishflies as well as to the prehistoric Euchauliodidae. All living alderflies – about 66 species all together – are part of the subfamily Sialinae, which contains between one and seven extant genera according to different scientists' views.

Neocorynura electra is an extinct species of sweat bee in the Halictidae genus Neocorynura.

<i>Oligochlora</i> Extinct genus of bees

Oligochlora is an extinct genus of sweat bee in the Halictidae subfamily Halictinae. The genus currently contains six species, all of which are known from the early Miocene Burdigalian stage Dominican amber deposits on the island of Hispaniola.

Augochlora leptoloba is a species of sweat bee in the genus Augochlora and the extinct monotypic subgenus Electraugochlora.

<i>Termitaradus mitnicki</i> Extinct species of true bug

Termitaradus mitnicki is an extinct species of true bug in the family Termitaphididae known only from early Miocene Burdigalian stage Dominican amber deposits on the island of Hispaniola.

<i>Electromyrmococcus</i> Extinct genus of true bugs

Electromyrmococcus is an extinct genus of mealybug in the Pseudococcidae subfamily Rhizoecinae. The genus currently contains three species, all from the early Miocene, Burdigalian stage, Dominican amber deposits on the island of Hispaniola.

<i>Coprinites</i> Extinct genus of fungi

Coprinites is an extinct monotypic genus of gilled fungus in the Agaricales family Agaricaceae. At present it contains the single species Coprinites dominicana.

<i>Protomycena</i> Extinct genus of fungi

Protomycena is an extinct monotypic genus of gilled fungus in the family Mycenaceae, of order Agaricales. At present it contains the single species Protomycena electra, known from a single specimen collected in an amber mine in the Cordillera Septentrional area of the Dominican Republic. The fruit body of the fungus has a convex cap that is 5 mm (0.2 in) in diameter, with distantly spaced gills on the underside. The curved stipe is smooth and cylindrical, measuring 0.75 mm (0.030 in) thick by 10 mm (0.39 in) long, and lacks a ring. It resembles extant species of the genus Mycena. Protomycena is one of only five known agaric fungus species known in the fossil record and the second to be described from Dominican amber.

<i>Dryinus grimaldii</i> Extinct species of insect

Dryinus grimaldii is an extinct species of wasp in the dryinid genus Dryinus. The species is solely known from the early Miocene, Burdigalian stage, Dominican amber deposits on the island of Hispaniola.

<i>Dryinus rasnitsyni</i> Extinct species of insect

Dryinus rasnitsyni is an extinct species of wasp in the dryinid genus Dryinus. The species is solely known from the early Miocene, Burdigalian stage, Dominican amber deposits on the island of Hispaniola.

Lebanoraphidia is an extinct genus of snakefly in the family Mesoraphidiidae. The genus is solely known from Cretaceous, Upper Neocomian, fossil amber found in Lebanon. Currently the genus is composed of a single species Lebanoraphidia nana.

Termitaradus dominicanus is an extinct species of termite bug in the family Termitaphididae known from a Miocene fossil found on Hispaniola. T. dominicanus is the third species in the genus Termitaradus to have been described from fossils found in Dominican amber after Termitaradus avitinquilinus and Termitaradus mitnicki.

Termitaradus avitinquilinus is an extinct species of termite bug in the family Termitaphididae known from several possibly Miocene fossils found in the Dominican Republic. T. avitinquilinus is the first species in the genus Termitaradus to have been described from fossils found in Dominican amber and is one of four species from New World amber, the others being Termitaradus protera, Termitaradus dominicanus and Termitaradus mitnicki.

Anthophorula (Anthophorula) persephone is an extinct species of bee in the subfamily Apinae known from a pair of possibly Miocene fossils found on Hispaniola. A. persephone is the first species of the bee tribe Exomalopsini to have been described from fossils found in Dominican amber and is the only species of Anthophorula found in the West Indies.

Zigrasolabis is an extinct genus of earwig in the family Labiduridae known from Cretaceous fossils found in Myanmar. The genus contains a single described species, Zigrasolabis speciosa.

Dicromantispa electromexicana is an extinct species of mantidfly in the neuropteran family Mantispidae known from a fossil found in North America.

Dicromantispa moronei is an extinct species of mantidfly in the neuropteran family Mantispidae known from a fossil found in the Caribbean.

Feroseta is an extinct genus of mantidfly in the neuropteran family Mantispidae known from a fossil found in North America, and which contains a single species, Feroseta prisca.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Engel, M.S.; Grimaldi D.A. (2007). "The neuropterid fauna of Dominican and Mexican amber (Neuropterida, Megaloptera, Neuroptera)". American Museum Novitates (3587): 1–58. doi:10.1206/0003-0082(2007)3587[1:TNFODA]2.0.CO;2. hdl:2246/5880.
  2. ↑ Iturralde-Vinent, M.A.; MacPhee, R.D.E. (1996). "Age and Paleogeographical Origin of Dominican Amber". Science. 273 (5283): 1850–1852. Bibcode:1996Sci...273.1850I. doi:10.1126/science.273.5283.1850. S2CID   129754021.
  3. ↑ Engel, M.S. (1995). "New Augochlorine Bees (Hymenoptera: Halictidae) in Dominican Amber, with a Brief Review of Fossil Halictidae". Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society. 69 (4): 334–349. JSTOR   25085728.
  4. ↑ Winterton, S.L.; et al. (2010). "On wings of lace: phylogeny and Bayesian divergence time estimates of Neuropterida (Insecta) based on morphological and molecular data". Systematic Entomology. 35 (3): 349–378. doi:10.1111/j.1365-3113.2010.00521.x. S2CID   84610713.
  5. ↑ Oswald, J.D. (2007). "Protosialis casca. Neuropterida Species of the World. Version 2.0". Archived from the original on 3 December 2010. Retrieved 1 October 2010.
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