Mesopsyche jinsuoguanensis, Lian & Cai & Huang, 2021

Lian, Xinneng, Cai, Chenyang & Huang, Diying, 2021, New species of Mesopsyche Tillyard, 1917 (Mecoptera: Mesopsychidae) from the Triassic of northwestern China, Zootaxa 4995 (3), pp. 565-572 : 566-568

Mesopsyche jinsuoguanensis sp. nov.

Figure 2

Etymology. Derived from Jinsuoguan Township, the type locality.

Diagnosis. Forewing relatively small, bearing numerous coloured spots. Sc with three branches, apex reached pterostigma, pterostigma pigment fused with adjacent spots. Rs 1+2 forked slightly after Rs 3+4, M 1+2 stem twice as long as M 3+4 stem.

Materials. Holotype, NIGP173731 , a complete forewing.

Type locality and horizon. Middle Triassic Tongchuan Formation , a locality near Jinsuoguan Township, Tongchuan City, Shaanxi Province, northwestern China .

Description. Forewing oval, relatively broad, length 8.9 mm, width 3.5 mm (length/width ratio about 2.5:1); posterior margin rounded; membrane with distinct dark spots, some fused together into bands, occurring at the longitudinal vein forks, crossveins, and the apices of longitudinal veins; Sc long, with three branches, apex extending into pterostigma; R 1 slightly bent at pterostigma, a crossvein joining R 1 and Sc 1; pterostigma colour as dark as the spots’, fused with adjacent spots; Rs 1 tilted upwards, Rs 1+2 forked slightly after Rs 3+4, a crossvein connecting Rs 1+2 and R 1, Rs 2 and Rs 3; M with four branches, two crossveins between M and Rs, a crossvein between M 1 and M 2, M 2 and M 3, M 3 and M 4 respectively; m-cua joined near the base of M 4 and CuA; the distal part of M stem faint, invisible, M fused with CuA for a long distance; CuA straight; CuP straight, apically curved; two crossveins between CuA and CuP; wing slightly concaved at the apex of CuP; three anal veins visible, a crossvein between CuP and A 1, A 1 and A 2, respectively.

Remarks. The character of coloured spots or bands in the wings readily separates M. jinsuoguanensis from all of the congeneric species. This new species closely resembles M. tongchuanensis from the Middle Triassic Tongchuan Formation of China, but differs from the latter by the smaller wing (length 8.9 mm vs. partly preserved in 11 mm), without crossvein connected the fork of Rs an M, the two crossveins of cua-cup much farther from wing base. It differs from M. dobrokhotovae of the Upper Triassic of Ukraine by the smaller wing (length 8.9 mm vs. 24 mm), not concave strongly in the middle of wing, and crossvein cup-a 1 much closer to wing base.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Forewing of Mesopsyche jinsuoguanensis sp. nov. from Tongchuan Formation in Shaanxi Province. A. Holotype (NIGP173731). B. Line drawing. Scale bars represent 1 mm in A–B.