Early Eocene big headed flies (Diptera: Pipunculidae) from the Okanagan Highlands, western North America

2014 ◽  
Vol 146 (4) ◽  
pp. 429-443 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Bruce Archibald ◽  
Christian Kehlmaier ◽  
Rolf W. Mathewes

AbstractThree new species of Pipunculidae (Diptera) are described (one named), from the early Eocene (Ypresian) Okanagan Highlands of British Columbia, Canada and Washington State, United States of America: Metanephrocerus belgardeaenew species from Republic, Washington; and Pipunculidae species A and Pipunculinae species A from Quilchena, British Columbia. We re-describe the late Eocene (Priabonian) species Protonephrocerus florissantius Carpenter and Hull from Florissant, Colorado, United States of America, and assign it to a new genus proposed here, Priabonanew genus. Pipunculinae species A is the oldest known member of the family whose wing lacks a separated M2 vein; previously this had been known in species only as old as Miocene Dominican amber. This is a presumably derived character state that is predominant in modern species. Molecular analysis indicates an origin of the Pipunculidae in the Maastrichtian; the morphological and taxonomic diversity seen here in the Ypresian is consistent with an early radiation of the family. This is concordant with the radiation of Auchenorrhyncha, upon which they mostly prey, which is in turn associated with the early Paleogene diversification of angiosperm-dominated forests recovering from the K-Pg extinction event.


2015 ◽  
Vol 148 (2) ◽  
pp. 209-228 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Bruce Archibald ◽  
Alexandr P. Rasnitsyn

AbstractWe describe three new genera and four new species (three named) of siricomorph sawflies (Hymenoptera: Symphyta) from the Ypresian (early Eocene) Okanagan Highlands: Pamphiliidae,Ulteramus republicensisnew genus, new speciesfrom Republic, Washington, United States of America; Siricidae,Ypresiosirex orthosemosnew genus, new speciesfrom McAbee, British Columbia, Canada; and Cephidae,Cuspilongus cachecreekensisnew genus, new speciesfrom McAbee and another cephid treated as Cephinae species A from Horsefly River, British Columbia, Canada. These are the only currently established occurrences of any siricomorph family in the Ypresian. We treat the undescribed new siricoid from the Cretaceous Crato Formation of Brazil as belonging to the Pseudosiricidae, not Siricidae, and agree with various authors that the YpresianMegapterites mirabilisCockerell is an ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). The Miocene speciesCephites oeningensisHeer andC. fragilisHeer, assigned to the Cephidae over a century and a half ago, are also ants. Many of the host plants that siricomporphs feed upon today first appeared in the Eocene, a number of these in the Okanagan Highlands in particular. The Okanagan Highlands sites where these wasps were found also had upper microthermal mean annual temperatures as are overwhelmingly preferred by most modern siricomorphs, but were uncommon in the globally warm Ypresian, only found then in higher elevations and highest latitudes.



Zootaxa ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 4951 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-79
Author(s):  
S. BRUCE ARCHIBALD ◽  
VLADIMIR N. MAKARKIN

Four new species of Raphidiidae are described from the early Eocene of western North America: Megaraphidia antiquissima sp. nov. from McAbee, M. ootsa sp. nov. from Driftwood Canyon, M. hopkinsi sp. nov. from the Allenby Formation (all from British Columbia, Canada), M. klondika sp. nov. from Republic (Washington, United States of America). Archiinocellia Handlirsch, 1910, Archiinocellia oligoneura Handlirsch, 1910 from Horsefly River (British Columbia, Canada), and A. protomaculata (Engel, 2011), comb. nov., from the Green River Formation (Colorado, United States of America) are redescribed. Archiinocellia is assigned to Raphidiidae, sit. nov. The apparent absence of sclerotized gonocoxites 9 in the Archiinocellia protomaculata male is probably plesiomorphic at the family level. As some modern snakeflies do not require a cold interval to complete their development and Eocene Inocelliidae and Raphidiidae lived in regions of warm winters (especially A. protomaculata), adaptation to cold winters in many modern snakeflies is a post-Eocene phenomenon. Eocene Raphidiidae of Europe (Priabonian) differ greatly from those of North America (Ypresian and Priabonian). This pattern might reflect dispersal in either direction or ranges established prior to continental separation. Eocene Inocelliidae of Europe (Priabonian), however, are more similar to those of North America (Ypresian and Lutetian). 



2015 ◽  
Vol 147 (6) ◽  
pp. 744-753 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Bruce Archibald ◽  
Sven Bradler

AbstractStem-group Phasmatodea, known as the Susumanioidea, are previously established from the Jurassic through the Paleocene. Here, we extend this record to the early Eocene with five new fossils: two forewings from the Klondike Mountain Formation exposures at Republic, Washington, United States of America, and three partially complete specimens from the McAbee locality in southern British Columbia, Canada. We assign both of the Republic specimens to the new genus and species Eoprephasma hichensinew genus, new species. Two of the McAbee fossils appear to represent two further new species, which we refer to as Susumanioidea species A and B for lack of clearly preserved diagnostic species-level character states. The third might belong to one of these two species, but this is unclear. In all three, the mesothorax and metathorax are not notably extended, the forewings are not shortened, the foreleg femur is straight, and species A possesses an extended, external ovipositor with an operculum (unknown in the other specimens). These conditions are rare and never found in combination in Euphasmatodea. All other stem-group Phasmatodea younger than the Early Cretaceous of China are only known from isolated wings.



2004 ◽  
Vol 136 (1) ◽  
pp. 61-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Bruce Archibald ◽  
Vladimir N. Makarkin

AbstractMicroberotha macculloughigen. nov. and sp. nov. from Early Eocene Okanagan Highlands amber of Hat Creek, British Columbia, Canada, is described. This new genus and species represents one of the smallest members of the family Berothidae and the first occurrence of the family in the New World Tertiary. The systematic position of the genus Microberotha within the family is rather unclear, but the structure of the male genitalia indicates a close association with the subfamily Cyrenoberothinae. Stratigraphy and palaeoenvironment of the Hat Creek locality are briefly discussed.



2014 ◽  
Vol 147 (4) ◽  
pp. 359-369 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Bruce Archibald ◽  
Vladimir N. Makarkin

AbstractArchaeochrysa sanikwanew species (Neuroptera: Chrysopidae: Nothochrysinae) is described from early Eocene (Ypresian) Okanagan Highlands shale at Driftwood Canyon, British Columbia, Canada. The evolutionary trends of three chrysopid wing venation characters (the shape of the intramedian cell, the position of the crossvein 2m-cu, and the development of the pseudocubitus) are analysed. The forewing venation of this species is very plesiomorphic compared with the vast majority species of Nothochrysinae, both fossil and extant.





Zootaxa ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 4934 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-133
Author(s):  
S. BRUCE ARCHIBALD ◽  
ROBERT A. CANNINGS ◽  
ROBERT J. ERICKSON ◽  
SETH M. BYBEE ◽  
ROLF W. MATHEWES

We describe the Cephalozygoptera, a new, extinct suborder of Odonata, composed of the families Dysagrionidae and Sieblosiidae, previously assigned to the Zygoptera, and possibly the Whetwhetaksidae n. fam. The Cephalozygoptera is close to the Zygoptera, but differs most notably by distinctive head morphology. It includes 59 to 64 species in at least 19 genera and one genus-level parataxon. One species is known from the Early Cretaceous (Congqingia rhora Zhang), possibly three from the Paleocene, and the rest from the early Eocene through late Miocene. We describe new taxa from the Ypresian Okanagan Highlands of British Columbia, Canada and Washington, United States of America: 16 new species of Dysagrionidae of the existing genus Dysagrion (D. pruettae); the new genera Okanagrion (O. threadgillae, O. hobani, O. beardi, O. lochmum, O. angustum, O. dorrellae, O. liquetoalatum, O. worleyae, all new species); Okanopteryx (O. jeppesenorum, O. fraseri, O. macabeensis, all new species); Stenodiafanus (S. westersidei, new species); the new genus-level parataxon Dysagrionites (D. delinei new species, D. sp. A, D. sp. B, both new); and one new genus and species of the new family Whetwhetaksidae (Whetwhetaksa millerae). 



1988 ◽  
Vol 62 (01) ◽  
pp. 56-69 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas H. Erwin

The composition of Permian members of the superfamily Subulitacea is considered, and 12 new species of Subulitacea are described from the silicified fauna of the Permian System of West Texas and New Mexico. Other elements of the gastropod fauna were previously described by Yochelson (1956a, 1960) and Batten (1958).The new genusIschnoptygmais established for subulitaceans possessing a plate-like columellar fold, and includes the new speciesIschnoptygma archibaldiandI. valentinei.The genus is placed within the new family Ischnoptygmidae. New species of Subulitidae areCeraunocochlis deformis, C. elongata, C. kidderi, C. trekensis, Strobeus girtyi, Soleniscus diminutus, S. variabilis, Cylindritopsis hamiltonae, andC. spheroides.The status of the genusLabridensis questioned, but provisionally retained. The assignment of the family Meekospiridae to the Subulitacea is questioned, and a single new species,Meekospira mimiae, is described.



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