Cratosmylus Myskowiak et al., 2015

Winterton, Shaun L., Martins, Caleb Califre, Makarkin, Vladimir, Ardila-Camacho, Adrian & Wang, Yongjie, 2019, Lance lacewings of the world (Neuroptera: Archeosmylidae, Osmylidae, Saucrosmylidae): review of living and fossil genera, Zootaxa 4581 (1), pp. 1-99 : 86

Cratosmylus Myskowiak et al., 2015

Type species. Cratosmylus magnificus Myskowiak et al., 2015: 28 (by original designation) ( Brazil) ( Early Cretaceous ) .

Comments. Cratosmylinae (containing only C. magnificus ) is herein excluded from Osmylidae and placed in Nymphidae following Winterton et al. (2017). In the absence of ocelli or thyridiate crossveins evident in the specimen, Myskowiak et al. (2015) noted that Cratosmylus could be placed in either Osmylidae or Nymphidae , and despite the clear similarity to Nymphidae wings, they proposed inclusion in Osmylidae rather than Nymphidae based on two characters. They argue that two features found in Cratosmylus that would otherwise place it in Nymphidae (i.e., Sc+RA with long forked veinlets and, that Sc+RA terminates beyond the apex of the wing), are also present in Osmylidae . Examining the examples given they are either incorrect, or not particularly convincing as apomorphies justifying placement in Osmylidae compared with Nymphidae . Firstly, Sc+RA with long forked veinlets is a character typical of nymphids in the subfamily Myiodactylinae and is also present not only in Porismus ( Fig. 26 ) and in some Protosmylinae and Stenosmylinae genera, but also present in various families of Neuroptera (e.g., Hemerobiidae , Chrysopidae ); it appears therefore to be rather labile as phylogenetic character. Secondly, Sc+RA does not terminate beyond the wing apex in the lance lacewings and examples of exceptions they provide (i.e., Heterosmylus ( Fig. 32 ) and Arbusella ) do not exhibit this state. Indeed, this appears to be a useful diagnostic character that separates early lacewings like Osmylidae from highly derived members of Myrmeleontoidea. Myskowiak et al. (2015) do identify a mark which they interpret as nygma in the forewing. Their figure of the structure ( Myskowiak et al., 2015: fig. 6) is not very clear, nor convincing as a nygma, but if it is indeed found to be a nygma, it would better support placement of Cratosmylus in Osmylidae rather than Nymphidae . While the wing of Cratosmylus is similar to Gumillinae some respects as Myskowiak et al. (2015) suggest, the venation is more similar to Nymphidae genera in Myiodactylinae . The remaining characters in the wing could easily be autapomorphies. Makarkin et al. (2017, 2018) considered Cratosmylinae (containing two Cretaceous genera from Brazil, Cratosmylus and Araripenymphes Menon et al. ) as a separate family closely related of Nymphidae .

Figures

FIGURE 26. Porisminae. Porismus strigatus Burmeister, wing venation (trichosors and vestiture omitted).

FIGURE 32. Protosmylinae. Heterosmylus wolonganus Yang.