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The early Eocene Swauka ypresiana n. gen. n. sp., the oldest gossamerwing damselfly (Odonata, Epallagidae, Epallaginae) and first fossil insect described from the Swauk Formation of central Washington, U.S.A.

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 May 2025

S. Bruce Archibald*
Affiliation:
Beaty Biodiversity Museum, University of British Columbia, 2212 Main Mall, Vancouver, Vancouver, BC, Canada, BC, V6T 1Z4 Department of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences, University of British Columbia, 2020–2207 Main Mall, Vancouver, BC, Canada, V6T 1Z4 Museum of Comparative Zoology, 26 Oxford Street, Cambridge, MA, U.S.A., 02138 Royal British Columbia Museum, 675 Belleville Street, Victoria, BC, Canada, V8W 9W2 Simon Fraser University, Department of Biological Sciences, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, BC, Canada, V5A 1S6
James E. Evans
Affiliation:
Room 255, Overman Hall, School of Earth, Environment, and Society, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, Ohio 43403
Rolf W. Mathewes
Affiliation:
Simon Fraser University, Department of Biological Sciences, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, BC, Canada, V5A 1S6
Robert A. Cannings
Affiliation:
Royal British Columbia Museum, 675 Belleville Street, Victoria, BC, Canada, V8W 9W2
*
Corresponding author: S. Bruce Archibald; Email: sba48@sfu.ca

Abstract

We describe Swauka ypresiana n. gen. n. sp., the second fossil gossamerwing damselfly (Odonata, Zygoptera, Epallagidae, Epallaginae) and its oldest occurrence. It is the first fossil insect reported from the Swauk Formation of central Washington State, U.S.A. It was recovered from the “Sandstone facies of Swauk Pass,” a fluvial unit, immediately below the Silver Pass Volcanic Member of the Swauk Formation, which has a U–Pb zircon CA-ID-TIMS age of 51.364 ± 0.029 Ma. The host deposits probably represent mud-dominated floodplain lake or oxbow lake environments.

UUID: http://zoobank.org/20167852-bcbc-4f8b-b372-dffa591abd6a

Information

Type
Articles
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution and reproduction, provided the original article is properly cited.
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Paleontological Society
Figure 0

Figure 1. The holotype wing of Swauka ypresiana n. gen. n. sp. UWBM PB 56327A, B: (1) photograph of the part (A side); (2), drawing from both the part and counterpart (A and B sides). The discoidal bracket (thickened distal side of the quadrangle and subquadrangle) is green and CuA immediately distad the discoidal bracket is red; the quadrangle is colored light brown, the subquadrangle is light blue, and the MP–CuA space cell immediately distad the subquadrangle is orange; RP1-2 is orange; a = arculus; Ax1, Ax2 = primary antenodal crossveins 1, 2; CuA = cubitus anterior vein; CuP = cubitus posterior vein; db = discoidal bracket; IR1 and IR2 = interradius veins 1 and 2; MA = media anterior vein; MP = media posterior vein; n = nodus; pt = pterostigma; RA = radius anterior vein; RP1–2 = the radius posterior distad the origin of RP3–4 and basad its branching to RP1 and RP2; RP1, RP2, RP3–4 = branches of the radius posterior; s = subnodus; ScP = subcostal posterior vein. Scale bar = 5 mm.