Hypopsylla belmontensis, Prokop, Jakub, Garrouste, Romain & Nel, André, 2016

Prokop, Jakub, Garrouste, Romain & Nel, André, 2016, A new permopsocidan genus and species from the Late Permian of Australia (Insecta: Acercaria: Psocidiidae), Zootaxa 4147 (5), pp. 589-592 : 590-592

Hypopsylla belmontensis sp. nov.

( Figs 1 , 2 )

Material. Holotype In 45397/ In 46044 (print and counterprint) (The Natural Museum, London). Age and outcrop. Late Permian , mid Lopingian , cca 255 Mya , Newcastle Coal Measures, Warners Bay - Belmont

area near Newcastle , New South Wales, Australia ( Shi et al. 2010). Etymology. Named after the type locality Belmont.

Description. Print and counterprint of two wings partly overlapping and deformed, these wings being the fore- and the hind wings due to their relative positions. Their venations are nearly identical. Forewing nearly complete, fragment 6.0 mm long, 2.5 mm wide in widest part; ScP ending on RA about 2.7 mm from wing base, but with a crossvein between it and costa; area between radius and costa broad, 0.25 mm wide; R, M and CuA fused into a common stem at wing base, making a weak posterior curve for about 1.1 mm; then M+CuA and radius separating, with R and basal stem R+M+CuA making a pronounced angle at this point; RP and RA separating 1.2 mm distal of base of M+CuA; convex RA with a deep posterior curve limiting a dark pigmented pterostigma, at least 1.2 mm long and 0.5 mm wide, pterostigma limited by a vein basally (ScP); a crossvein perpendicular to RA and to RP below middle of pterostigma; relatively concave RP without visible fork in preserved part; M and CuA separating immediately distal of point of reemergence of M+CuA; neutral stem of M very long, 2.5 mm long before its first fork; anterior branch of M distally with a deep fork; posterior branch of M with three branches ending on posterior wing margin; convex CuA very short before crossvein cua-cup ends on its, being aligned with distal part of CuA; distal part of CuA very long, 2.5 mm long before areola postica; areola postica very long and narrow, parallel to posterior wing margin, with CuA1 curved and CuA2 very short; cua-cup weaker than CuA and M, 0.9 mm long from base of CuP and CuA; concave CuP weakly curved and simple; two convex simple anal veins basally curved; anal area about 2.2 mm long along posterior wing margin.

Discussion. The pattern of wing venation of Hypopsylla is typical of the Acercaria with a common stem R+M+CuA and a neutral crossvein cua-cup between concave CuP and convex CuA weaker than CuA ( Nel et al. 2012).

Hypopsylla has the wing venation synapomorphies of the Permopsocida Tillyard, 1926 , as redefined in Huang et al. (2016), viz. fore- and hind wings with sclerotized pterostigma posteriorly limited by RA, with RA making a strong angle at the point of contact with crossvein between it and RP (synapomorphy of the Permopsocida , a structure found also in some Psocodean forewing but never in their hind wing); a distinct angle of radial vein at base of M+CuA (a character absent in Psocodea and Thripida, but present to a certain point in the forewings of many Hemiptera of different lineages, viz. the Archescytinidae , Prosbolidae , Pincombeidae , etc.); presence of an areola postica in forewings (probably an acercarian symplesiomorphy as this structure is present in Psocodea and Hemiptera but reduced in Thripida); presence of an areola postica (forked CuA) in hindwings, a character present in Hemiptera but very rare in Psocodea (in some specimens of Epipsocus lucifugus (Rambur, 1842)) , and absent in the Thripida; RP with a simple apical fork (structure also present in Psocodea, Thripida , and Hemiptera ); M with two main branches, each forked again (a character present in Hemiptera, Thripida have either a simple or a forked M, while Psocodea have a three- to simple M). The ScP either parallel to radius, or fused to costal margin, re-emerging from it or not, are character states present in various Psocoptera . Hypopsylla differs from the other representatives of the clade Permopsocida in the much deeper posterior curve of RA in the pterostigma and the presence of three branches of posterior branch of M. This particular pterostigma reminds the pterostigma of the ‘hypoperlid’ Idelopsocus , with the important difference in the fact that the pterostigma is covering the area between C and RA but also part of area between RA and RP in Ideloposcus.

Hypopsylla differs from the Permopsociidae in the absence of a crossvein between M and CuA. It differs from the Archipsyllidae in the ScP ending in RA instead of going into costal margin (and re-emerging or not distally to reach RA) (Huang et al. 2016 suppl. inf.). The presence of a crossvein between RP and the posterior side of the pterostigma is not discriminant as it is present in the three families ( Permopsocus (Permopsocidae) , Dichentomum (Psocidiidae) and in the Archipsyllidae ).

Hypopsylla shares with the Psocidiidae the elongate and narrow areola postica, absence of crossvein between M and CuA, presence of a short crossvein between ScP and costa as in Dichentomum , ScP ending on RA distal of base of RP, but closer to this point than to the pterostigma, unlike to the other taxa of this family. The wing venation of Hypopsylla belmontensis allows its assignment to the Psocidiidae , increasing the diversity of the Permian Permopsocida .

Figures

FIGURE 1. Hypopsylla belmontensis, line drawing of forewing venation. Scale bar represents 1 mm.

FIGURE 2. Hypopsylla belmontensis, holotype In 45397 / In 46044. A, photograph print under dry condition; B, photograph imprint under alcohol (copyright Natural History Museum, London). Scale bars represent 1 mm.