Eugeroptera, Petrulevičius & Gutiérrez, 2016

Petrulevičius, Julián F. & Gutiérrez, Pedro R., 2016, New basal Odonatoptera (Insecta) from the lower Carboniferous (Serpukhovian) of Argentina., Arquivos Entomolóxicos 16, pp. 341-358 : 344

1.1. Eugeroptera ord. nov.

Included taxa: Eugeropteridae Riek, 1983 with Eugeropteron Riek, 1983 including only Eugeropteron lunatum Riek, 1983 , and Tupacsala niunamenos gen. nov. et sp. nov.

Phylogenetic definition: Eugeroptera ord. nov. shall include all the Odonatoptera more closely related to Eugeropteron lunatum Riek, 1983 than to any of the type species of the other type genera of the Odonatoptera group taxa (stem-based definition).

Diagnosis: Characters from mesothoracic and metathoracic wing venation (see below). (1) wings with relatively undeveloped anal field (more marked in forethoracic wing); (2) MP unbranched; (3) CuP with a kink at the point of contact with AA; (4) archaedictyon reduced; (5) presence of a subcostal brace; (6) Presence of an anal brace in fore- and hindwings; (7) presence of a cubital cell; (8) ScP short (up to RP1 and RP2 bifurcation) in hindwings; (9) free ScA(+) relatively short, forked into a ScA1+2 branch fused with the anterior margin, and a strong crossvein like branch ScA3+4; (10) subcostal brace formed by ScA+ScA fork+scp-ra+ra-rp; (11) ScA3+4+scp-ra+ra-rp aligned; (12) MP linked by a crossvein to CuA in hindwings; (13) MP bending anteriorly before and in the connection (via crossvein) with CuA; (14) RA bending to wing margin and running adjacent at the level of RP1-RP2 bifurcation (no place to pterostigma); (15) cubital cell in (forewings? and) hindwings formed by five elements: CuA, CuA crossing, CuP crossing, CuP, cua-cup; (16) AA1+2 not fused with CuP in fore- and hindwings; (17) anal brace composed of five venal elements: AA, AA1+2, cup-aa1+2 crossvein, kink in CuP, cua-cup crossvein; (18) pectination of AA1+ 2 in mesothoracic wing; (19) RP+MA elevated basally to convex level.

Phylogenetic systematic: Eugeroptera ord. nov. retains nearly all the synapomorphies of the stem group of the Odonatoptera (Characters: 1-7). Character 8 is a synapomorphy of the new order (convergent to Eomeganisoptera, Bechly, 2007). Characters 9-18 are groundplan symplesiomorphies of Odonatoptera . Character 19 seems to be a synapomorphy for Hydropalaeoptera (see Remarks of Neodonatoptera). Kukalová-Peck (2016) considered the RP elevated basally to convex level a synapomorphy for Palaeoptera.