Arcantipsocus courvillei, Azar & Nel & Néraudeau, 2009

Azar, Dany, Nel, André & Néraudeau, Didier, 2009, A new Cretaceous psocodean family from the Charente-Maritime amber (France) (Insecta, Psocodea, Psocomorpha), Geodiversitas 31 (1), pp. 117-127 : 119-121

Arcantipsocus courvillei n. sp. ( Figs 1-10)

MATERIAL. — Holotype specimen no. ARC 10.2 (male), deposited in the palaeontology collections of the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle, Paris.

Azar D. et al.

TYPE LOCALITY AND HORIZON. — Archingeay-Les Nouillers , Charente-Maritime, France ; Lower Cretaceous , uppermost Albian .

ETYMOLOGY. — After Dr Philippe Courville, palaeontologist who helped us in collecting fossil insects in this amber.

DIAGNOSIS. — As for the genus.

DESCRIPTION

Total body length 2.11 mm ( Figs 1-3). Head nearly triangular. Antenna with 14 segments (12 flagellomeres) 2.42 mm long, flagellomeres filiform, elongate, and decreasing progressively in length. The first flagellomere being the longest 0.3 mm in length, the shortest the last one 0.1 mm. Pedicel and scape nearly cylindrical, respectively 0.11 and 0.1 mm in length, and 0.05 and 0.03 mm wide. Compound eyes nearly rounded with 0.22 mm of diameter. Three large ocelli disposed in triangle between compound eyes.Maxillary palpus 4-segmented ( Fig. 4), with mx4 the longest and cylindrical; mx1 0.04 mm long and 0.03 mm wide; mx2 0.15 mm long and 0.03 mm wide; mx3 0.05 mm long and 0.03 mm wide; mx4 0.18 mm long and 0.03 mm wide. Labial palpus not visible. Visible part of lacinia 0.09 mm long ( Figs 5 ; 6), with two shoulders made of two smooth teeth each, the first being in the inner middle and the second situated slightly before the tip, the apex formed of two smooth teeth, one of them being very small.

Thorax 0.58 mm wide; mesothorax nearly triangular.

Legs with tarsi 3-segmented, distal segment bearing claws with one preapical tooth ( Fig. 7).

Forewing patterned and setose, 1.97 mm long and 0.57 mm wide ( Fig. 3 ). Marginal setae crossing. Two rows of setae on veins.Apex slightly acuminate. Most veins evanescent except in their terminal parts. Pterostigma dark, thickened and setose, convex and not connected to Rs by a cross-vein. Sc diffuse and evanescent. R1 simple reaching costal margin at 1.55 mm from wing base. Rs evanescent and hardly visible; fork of R2 + 3 and R4 + 5 1.41 mm distal of wing base; R2 + 3 and R4 + 5 strongly curved; reaching wing margin respectively at 1.7 and 1.88 mm from wing base. M 2-branched. M1 and M2 separating 1.58 mm distal of wing base; M1 reaching wing margin, 0.38 mm long; M2 nearly straight, 0.27 mm long. Fork of Cu 1 in Cu1a and Cu1b 1.31 mm from wing base; Cu1a strongly curved and longer than Cu1b. Areola postica (AP) free; no cross-vein between AP cell and M. Cu2 very weak and hardly visible. A distinct nodulus present. Anal vein (A) very poorly preserved.

Hind wing hyaline, smaller than forewing, with setose margin, 1.55 mm long and 0.5 mm wide ( Fig. 8 ). Sc not visible. R fused basally with M and Cu. R1 0.23 mm long, not reaching anterior wing margin. No basi-radial cell. Bifurcation of Rs into R2 + 3 and R4 + 5 1.1 mm from wing base. M bifurcated. Bifurcation of M into M1 and M2 1 mm from wing base; M1 0.45 mm long; M2 0.32 mm long. Cu1 reaching posterior wing margin at 1.16 mm. Remaining veins hidden.

Abdomen 1 mm long and 0.45 mm wide. Male appendages relatively well preserved ( Figs 9 ; 10 ), hypandrium transparent and not well sclerotized, with a flattened posterior extremity; paraproct with sharply bilobed process; phallosome visible by transparency, Y-shaped.

Figures

FIG. 5. — Photograph of the apical part of the lacinia of Arcantipsocus courvillei n. gen., n. sp., holotype no. ARC 10.2, male.

FIG. 3. — Drawing of the habitus of Arcantipsocus courvillei n. gen., n. sp., holotype no. ARC 10.2, male, dorsal view. Scale bar: 1 mm.

FIG. 8.— Drawing of the hindwing of Arcantipsocus courvillei n.gen., n. sp., holotype no. ARC 10.2, male. Scale bar: 0.5 mm.

FIG. 9. — Photograph of the male genitalia of Arcantipsocus courvillei n. gen., n. sp., holotype no. ARC 10.2.

FIG. 10.— Drawing of the male genitalia of Arcantipsocus courvillei n. gen., n. sp., holotype no. ARC 10.2. Scale bar: 0.2 mm.