Pronemouridae fam. nov. (Insecta: Plecoptera), the stem group of nemouridae and notonemouridae,from the Middle Jurassic of Inner Mongolia,China

Abstract: A new family, Pronemouridae fam. nov., with a new genus, Pronemoura gen. nov., and five new species of fossil stoneflies are described from Daohugou village (Middle Jurassic), Inner Mongolia, China: P. shii sp. nov., P. angustithorax sp. nov., P. longialata sp. nov., P. minuta sp. nov. and P. peculiaris sp. nov. Wing venation of pronemourinids presents some or considerable variety in the fore and hind wings of the same or different individuals. Pronemourinidae, retaining plesiomorphic characters (short, multisegmented cerci and CuA with forks), should be treated as the stem group of Nemouridae and Notonemouridae. Based on fossil data, we propose a model in which the extant plecopterid distribution began in the Early Cretaceous. Nemouridae and Notonemouridae must have occurred in Asia and begun to migrate from here by at least the Early Cretaceous.     

The oldest Gondwanan fossil of Leiinae (Diptera,Mycetophilidae): Phylogenetic and evolutionary implications

A fossil Mycetophilidae from the Aptian Crato Formation—Cretomanota gondwanica gen. nov., sp. nov.—is described, which is the first mycetophilid from the Crato Formation and corresponds to the oldest known fossil leiine and only the second Gondwanan fossil mycetophilid described so far. Cretomanota gondwanica and both species of Alavamanota Blagoderov and Arillo were added as terminals to the data matrix of a general phylogenetic analysis of the Mycetophilidae, and both fit into the Leiinae. Alavamanota is monophyletic, sister to the clade composed by Cretomanota and the extant genus Manota Williston. The biology of the extant members of this fungivorous family corroborates the reconstruction of the Crato palaeoenvironment as including woodlands with humid habitats and microhabitats. The presence of a Cretaceous member of the tribe Manotini at low latitudes in South America reinforces the hypothesis that the clade with all manotines except Leiella Edwards corresponds to a Lower Cretaceous offshoot from a group in southern Gondwana expanding its distribution to more northern areas into the Gondwana and into Laurasia.     

The fossil record of Limopsis (Bivalvia: Limopsidae) in Antarctica and the southern high latitudes

Abstract: Limopsis is one of the most speciose and widespread bivalve genera in the Southern Ocean at the present day. However, the fossil record of the genus is poorly known from the southern high latitudes. Here, we review the fossil record in this region to help understand the evolutionary origins of the genus. Limopsis infericola sp. nov. and additional specimens of a previously described species are added to the fossil record of Antarctica. The globally distributed limopsid clade had its earliest occurrences in the Early Cretaceous of Europe and New Zealand, then radiated during the Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian, 70.6–65.5 Ma). Fossil evidence shows that the genus underwent a second, Cenozoic, radiation related to the isolation of Antarctica and the onset of cooling in the southern hemisphere. The genus has persisted in Antarctica for the last 50 myr, adapting to extreme changes in the environmental conditions, including surviving the last glacial maximum in marine refugia.     

Mesozoic Trachypachidae (Insecta: Coleoptera) from China

Abstract: Four well‐preserved beetles, attributed to Eodromeinae within Trachypachidae, are described from the Mesozoic of Inner Mongolia, China. Eodromeus robustus sp. nov., E. daohugouensis sp. nov. and Unda chifengensis sp. nov. are from the Middle Jurassic of Daohugou. The diagnostic characters for the two genera are revised, and all species of these genera are keyed. A new genus and species, Sinodromeus liutiaogouensis gen. nov., sp. nov., is described from the Lower Cretaceous Yixian Formation of Liutiaogou. The current fossil records of Trachypachidae from China are reviewed, and only five species (four described here) can be convincingly attributed to this family. The morphological disparity of Mesozoic Eodromeinae suggests that they evolved a broad spectrum of locomotory lifestyles.     

Phylogeny of split‐footed lacewings (Neuroptera,Nymphidae), with descriptions of new Cretaceous fossil species from China

A phylogeny of the lacewing family Nymphidae based on morphology and DNA sequences is presented including representatives of all living genera and selected fossil genera. Widely distributed Jurassic and Cretaceous genera gave rise to recent taxa now restricted to Australasia. Two previously defined clades (i.e. Nymphinae and Myiodactylinae) were recovered and reflect the diverging adult and larval morphology of members of these two subfamilies. From Chinese Cretaceous deposits, a new genus (Spilonymphes gen. nov.) is described with one new species, as well as new species described in the genera Baissoleon Makarkin and Sialium Westwood.     

From near extinction to diversification by means of a shift in pollination mechanism in the gymnosperm relict Ephedra (Ephedraceae,Gnetales)

Pollination in gymnosperms is usually accomplished by means of wind, but some groups are insect‐pollinated. We show that wind and insect pollination occur in the morphologically uniform genus Ephedra (Gnetales). Based on field experiments over several years, we demonstrate distinct differences between two Ephedra species that grow in sympatry in Greece in pollen dispersal and clump formation, insect visitations and embryo formation when insects are denied access to cones. Ephedra distachya, nested in the core clade of Ephedra, is anemophilous, which is probably the prevailing state in Ephedra. Ephedra foeminea, sister to the remaining species of the genus, is entomophilous and pollinated by a range of diurnal and nocturnal insects. The generalist entomophilous system of E. foeminea, with distinct but infrequent insect visitations, is in many respects similar to that reported for Gnetum and Welwitschia and appears ancestral in Gnetales. The Ephedra lineage is well documented already from the Early Cretaceous, but the diversity declined dramatically during the Late Cretaceous, possibly to near extinction around the Cretaceous–Palaeogene boundary. The clade imbalance between insect‐ and wind‐pollinated lineages is larger than expected by chance and the shift in pollination mode may explain why Ephedra escaped extinction and began to diversify again.     

Snipe flies (Diptera: Rhagionidae) from the Daohugou Formation (Jurassic), Inner Mongolia,and the systematic position of related records in China

Abstract: Four new species referred to three new genera and one known genus of fossil snipe flies (Family Rhagionidae) from the Daohugou Formation of Chifeng City in Inner Mongolia, north‐eastern China, are described as Daohugorhagio elongatus gen. et sp. nov., Parachrysopilus jurassicus gen. et sp. nov., Sinorhagio sinuatus sp. nov. and Trichorhagio gregarius gen. et sp. nov. These taxa represent only a fraction of the rhagionid assemblage in the Daohugou biota. They contribute towards the high diversity and abundance of snipe flies during the latest Middle Jurassic – earliest Late Jurassic. The diagnosis of Sinorhagio K. Zhang, Yang and Ren, 2006 is revised based on the new results. Many genera and species from the Lower Cretaceous of China have been assigned to Rhagionidae. Most of these do not actually belong to this family: specifically Mesorhagiophryne incerta Hong and Wang, 1990, M. robusta Hong and Wang, 1990, Mesostratiomyia laiyangensis Hong and Wang, 1990, Stratiomyopsis robusta Hong and Wang, 1990, Longhuaia orientalis Hong, Wang and Sun, 1992, Basilorhagio venusius Ren, 1995. Pauromyia oresbia Ren, 1998 is transferred to an archisargid genus as Sharasargus oresbius (Ren, 1998) comb. nov.     

First fossil record of the genus Nageia (Podocarpaceae) in south China and its phytogeographic implications

The first fossil record of the genus Nageia Gaertner from the Tertiary of southern China is reported. Nageia hainanensis sp. nov. is described from the Eocene Changchang Formation of Hainan Island. The extant species of Nageia are widely distributed in southeastern Asia, from northeastern India to southeastern China and southern Japan, and southward through Indochina to the Malay Archipelago and New Guinea. The fossil evidence of Nageia has been discovered from the Lower Cretaceous of the Far East of Russia and Japan. The distribution of both modern and fossil species of Nageia indicates that this genus could have originated in the northeastern part of Asia in the Early Cretaceous and spread to south China at least in the Eocene. Discovery of Nageia fossil record in south China provides important evidence for the geological and phytogeographic history of the genus.     

Revision and cladistic analysis of the jumping spider genus Onomastus (Araneae: Salticidae)

The jumping spider genus Onomastus Simon, 1900 is revised. Four new species: Onomastus indra sp. nov. , Onomastus kaharian sp. nov. , Onomastus pethiyagodai sp. nov. , and Onomastus rattotensis sp. nov. are described. Parsimony analysis of 26 morphological characters supported the monophyly of Onomastus. Lyssomanes is sister to Onomastus. Onomastus separates into two clades: the widespread South‐East Asia clade and the South Asia clade. The South Asia clade is restricted to the Sri Lanka–Western Ghats biodiversity hotspot. Species of the South Asia clade appear to be spot endemics, highly in danger of extinction because of habitat loss and climate change. Male palps are complex and species‐specific, suggesting rapid divergent evolution. © 2010 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2010, 159 , 711–745.     

Fossil Ericaceae from New Zealand: Deconstructing the use of fossil evidence in historical biogeography

The Australasian Ericaceae epitomize many problems in understanding the biogeography of the southern hemisphere, especially the relative contributions of Gondwanan vicariance and dispersal. Late Cretaceous fossil pollen of the family suggests extreme antiquity of the group in Australasia, but recent phylogenetic evidence suggests much younger histories for most of the groups in that region. This paper documents two new species of latest Oligocene-Early Miocene macrofossils of Ericaceae from New Zealand. Cyathodophyllum novae-zelandiae G.J.Jord. & Bannister gen. and sp. nov. is the oldest record of the tribe Styphelieae, but is of a clade now extinct in New Zealand, possibly related to the Tasmanian genus Cyathodes. Richeaphyllum waimumuensis G.J.Jord. & Bannister sp. nov. is a member of Richeeae, but it is ambiguous as to whether it is a member of the impressive modern New Zealand radiation in Dracophyllum. These fossils emphasize the fact that at least some of the fossil pollen of Ericaceae may have been derived from extinct lineages and therefore should not be used as evidence for the antiquity of any modern New Zealand clade of Ericaceae. New fossils and/or detailed analysis of fossil and extant pollen may help resolve such uncertainty.     

The oldest higher true crabs (Crustacea: Decapoda: Brachyura): insights from the Early Cretaceous of the Americas

Despite the extensive fossil record of higher crabs (Eubrachyura) from Late Cretaceous and Cenozoic rocks worldwide, their Early Cretaceous occurrences are scarce and fragmentary, obscuring our understanding of their early evolution. Until now, representatives of only two families of eubrachyuran‐like crabs were known from the Early Cretaceous: Componocancridae and Tepexicarcinidae fam. nov., both monospecific lineages from the Albian (~110–100 Ma) of North and Central America, respectively. The discovery of Telamonocarcinus antiquus sp. nov. (Telamonocarcinidae) from the early Albian of Colombia, South America (~110 Ma), increases to three the number of known Early Cretaceous eubrachyuran‐like families. The ages and geographical distributions of the oldest eubrachyuran‐like taxa (i.e. Componocancridae, Telamonocarcinidae and Tepexicarcinidae fam. nov.) suggest that the oldest higher true crabs might have originated in the Americas; that they were already morphologically diverse by the late Early Cretaceous; and that their most recent common ancestor must be rooted in the Early Cretaceous, or even the Late Jurassic.     

New water scavenger beetles (Coleoptera: Hydrophilidae) from the mesozoic of Mongolia

A new genus and two new species of water scavenger beetles, Hydrophilopsia bontsaganica, sp. nov. and Prospercheus cristatus, gen. et sp. nov., are described from the Upper Jurassic and Lower Cretaceous of Mongolia. The systematic position of the new genus is discussed.     

Diversity of Menispermaceae from the Paleocene and Eocene of South China

We present here the earliest known Asian fossil records of the Menispermaceae based on fossil fruits from Paleocene and Eocene localities in South China. A new genus and species, Paleoorbicarpum parvum sp. nov., and two new species of Stephania Loureiro, S. ornamenta sp. nov. and S. geniculata sp. nov., are recognized from Paleocene deposits of the Sanshui Basin, Guangdong, and a new occurrence of the widespread Eocene species Stephania auriformis (Hollick) Han & Manchester is recognized from the Maoming Basin, Guangdong. The Paleocene Stephania specimens described here represent the earliest fossil endocarp record of the Menispermaceae in eastern Asia. This discovery shows that the moonseed family had arrived in tropical and humid South China by at least the middle Paleocene, which provides important evidence for the origin and phytogeographic history of the family.     

Descriptions and phylogenetic relationships of a new genus and two new species of Oligo‐Miocene cormorants (Aves: Phalacrocoracidae) from Australia

Tertiary cormorant fossils (Aves: Phalacrocoracidae) from Late Oligocene deposits in Australia are described. They derive from the Late Oligocene – Early Miocene (26–24 Mya) Etadunna and Namba Formations in the Lake Eyre and Lake Frome Basins, South Australia, respectively. A new genus, Nambashag gen. nov. , with two new species ( Nambashag billerooensis sp. nov. , 30 specimens; Nambashag microglaucus sp. nov. , 14 specimens), has been established. Phylogenetic analyses based on 113 morphological and two integumentary characters indicated that Nambashag is the sister taxon to the Early Miocene Nectornis miocaenus of Europe and all extant phalacrocoracids. As Nambashag, Nectornis, and extant phalacrocoracids constitute a strongly supported clade sister to Anhinga species, the fossil taxa have been referred to Phalacrocoracidae. Sulids and Fregata were successive sister taxa to the Phalacrocoracoidea, i.e. phalacrocoracids + Anhinga. As phalacrocoracids lived in both Europe and Australia during the Late Oligocene and no older phalacrocoracid taxa are known, the biogeographical origin of cormorants remains unanswered. The phylogenetic relationships of extant taxa were not wholly resolved, but contrary to previous morphological analyses, considerable concordance was found with relationships recovered by recent molecular analyses. Microcarbo is sister to all other extant phalacrocoracids, and all Leucocarbo species form a well‐supported clade. © 2011 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2011, 163 , 277–314.     

Phylogeny of the family Sialidae (Insecta: Megaloptera) inferred from morphological data,with implications for generic classification and historical biogeography

Sialidae (alderflies) is a family of the holometabolous insect order Megaloptera, with ca. 75 extant species in eight genera distributed worldwide. Alderflies are a group of “living fossils” with a long evolutionary history. The oldest fossil attributed to Sialidae dates back to the Early Jurassic period. Further, the global distribution of modern‐day species shows a remarkably disjunctive pattern. However, due to the rareness of most species and scarcity of comprehensive taxonomic revisions, the phylogeny of Sialidae remains largely unexplored, and the present classification system is in great need of renewal. Here we reconstruct the first phylogeny for Sialidae worldwide based on the most comprehensive sampling and broadest morphological data ever presented for this group of insects. All Cenozoic alderflies belong to a monophyletic clade, which may also include the Early Jurassic genus ?Dobbertinia, and the Late Jurassic genus ?Sharasialis is their putative sister taxon. Two subfamilies of Sialidae are proposed, namely ?Sharasialinae subfam. nov. and Sialidinae. Austrosialis is the sister of all other extant genera, an assemblage which comprises three monophyletic lineages: the Stenosialis lineage, the Ilyobius lineage, and the Sialis lineage. The revised classification of Sialidae is composed of 12 valid genera and 87 valid species. Ilyobius and Protosialis are recognized as valid generic names, while Nipponosialis is treated as a synonym of Sialis. Reconstruction of the ancestral area proposes a global distribution of alderflies in Pangaea before their diversification. The generic diversification of alderflies might have occurred before the breakup of Pangaea, but the divergence of some lineages or genera was probably promoted by the splitting of this supercontinent.     

Provannid and provannid‐like gastropods from the Late Cretaceous cold seeps of Hokkaido (Japan) and the fossil record of the Provannidae (Gastropoda: Abyssochrysoidea)

A fauna of provannid and provannid‐like shells is described from Upper Cretaceous seep carbonates in Hokkaido, Japan. We describe two new provannid species, Provanna tappuensis sp. nov. and Desbruyeresia kanajirisawensis sp. nov. , with preserved protoconchs of unquestionable provannid type with decollate apex. This material confirms the occurrence of Provannidae as early as the Middle Cenomanian. We also describe Hokkaidoconcha gen. nov. and a new family Hokkaidoconchidae fam. nov. , with two named species, H. hikidai sp. nov. and H. tanabei sp. nov . Hokkaidoconchidae are possibly related to the Provannidae, judging from a similar, but not decollate larval shell, although the juvenile teleoconch whorls differ in being of a general cerithimorph appearance and the details of the aperture are unknown. Furthermore, we review the published fossil record of Provannidae and Abyssochrysidae, and we consider that in those older than the Eocene, there is no evidence preserved that unequivocally supports a position there. The Jurassic Acanthostrophia acanthica from Italy seems to be the oldest known record of Abyssochrysidae, and the most reliable occurrence of the family, older than from the Miocene. Other fossil, pre‐Miocene species that have been classified in the Abyssochryssidae are provisionally referred to Hokkaidoconchidae. © 2008 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2008, 154 , 421–436.     

Origin and evolution of the Pseudorhyncocyonidae,a European Paleogene family of insectivorous placental mammals

Two new species of pseudorhyncocyonid, Fordonia lawsoni sp. nov. and Leptictidium prouti sp. nov. from the UK earliest Eocene, described here, are older than any previously recorded member of the family. They are represented by teeth from numerous loci, which allow a better understanding of the sparsely known dentitions of currently known pseudorhyncocyonids. This facilitates the recognition of two further species of Leptictidium, L. listeri sp. nov. from the Middle Eocene of Germany and L. storchi sp. nov. from the Late Eocene of France. Study of occlusal relationships also helps to fill gaps in our knowledge of missing tooth loci. Cladistic analysis of pseudorhyncocyonids with their previously judged closest relatives, the Leptictidae, Pantolesta and Palaeanodonta, shows that two European species, Diaphyodectes prolatus and Palaeictops? levei, formerly thought to be leptictids, are instead primitive pseudorhyncocyonids, extending the range of the family further back in time to the Middle Paleocene. P? levei is placed in the new genus Phakodon gen. nov. The analysis also shows that the Pseudorhyncocyonidae are sister group to the other three groups combined and that family‐level differentiation in this probable clade took place as early as the earliest Paleocene.