Euphaeidae, sometimes incorrectly named Epallagidae and commonly called gossamerwings, is a
family
Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...
of
damselflies
Damselflies are flying insects of the suborder Zygoptera in the order Odonata. They are similar to dragonflies, which constitute the other odonatan suborder, Anisoptera, but are smaller and have slimmer bodies. Most species fold the wings along ...
in the
odonate superfamily
Calopterygoidea. The family is small, consisting of around 78 species living species in nine genera occurring in the Palearctic, Australasia, and Asia. The family contains two subfamilies,
Euphaeinae, encompassing all the living species and a single fossil genus, and the extinct
Eodichromatinae, encompassing fossil genera from the Eocene to late Oligocene.
Euphaeid species are large and mostly
metallic-coloured, looking similar to species of damselflies in the family
Calopterygidae
The Calopterygidae are a family of damselflies, in the suborder Zygoptera.
They are commonly known as the broad-winged damselflies, demoiselles, or jewelwings. These rather large damselflies have wingspans of 50–80 mm (compared to about 4 ...
.
The larvae have seven pairs of supplementary gills along the abdomen in addition to the usual three sac-like gills at the tip of the abdomen. Adults have the fore- and hindwings of equal length, barely petiolate and a long pterostigma that is broader in the hindwing. Adults have close veins and numerous antenodals (15-38), and most breed in forest streams.
Subfamilies, tribes, and genera
*†
Eodichromatinae
**†Eodichromatini
***†''
Ejerslevia'' (
Fur Formation,
Ypresian
In the geologic timescale the Ypresian is the oldest age or lowest stratigraphic stage of the Eocene. It spans the time between , is preceded by the Thanetian Age (part of the Paleocene) and is followed by the Eocene Lutetian Age. The Ypresian i ...
, Denmark)
***†''
Eodichroma'' (
Wellborn Formation
The Wellborn Formation is a geologic formation in Texas. It preserves fossils dating back to the Paleogene
The Paleogene ( ; British English, also spelled Palaeogene or Palæogene; informally Lower Tertiary or Early Tertiary) is a geologic p ...
,
Priabonian
The Priabonian is, in the ICS's geologic timescale, the latest age or the upper stage of the Eocene Epoch or Series. It spans the time between . The Priabonian is preceded by the Bartonian and is followed by the Rupelian, the lowest stage ...
, Texas)
***†''
Labandeiraia'' (Fur Formation &
Green River Formation
The Green River Formation is an Eocene geologic formation that records the sedimentation in a group of intermountain lakes in three basins along the present-day Green River in Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah. The sediments are deposited in very fine ...
, Ypresian, Denmark & Colorado)
***†''
Parazacallites'' (
Aix-en-Provence Formation,
Chattian
The Chattian is, in the geologic timescale, the younger of two ages or upper of two stages of the Oligocene Epoch/ Series. It spans the time between . The Chattian is preceded by the Rupelian and is followed by the Aquitanian (the lowest sta ...
, France)
***†''
Republica'' (
Klondike Mountain Formation, Ypresian, Washington)
***†''
Solveigia wittecki'' (Fur Formation, Ypresian, Denmark)
***†''
Wolfgangeuphaea'' (
Baltic Amber
The Baltic region is home to the largest known deposit of amber, called Baltic amber or succinite. It was produced sometime during the Eocene epoch, but exactly when is controversial. It has been estimated that these forests created more than 1 ...
, Priabonian, Europe)
**†Litheuphaeini
***†''
Litheuphaea'' (Goshen flora, Green River Formation & Baltic Amber, Ypresian - Repuelian?, Europe, Colorado, & Oregon)
**''incertae sedis''
***†''
Eodysphaea'' (Green River Formation, Ypresian, Colorado)
*
Euphaeinae
**''
Anisopleura''
**''
Bayadera''
**''
Cryptophaea''
**''
Dysphaea''
**†''
Elektroeuphaea'' (Baltic Amber, Priabonian, Europe)
**''
Epallage
''Epallage'' is a genus of damselflies
Damselflies are flying insects of the suborder Zygoptera in the order Odonata. They are similar to dragonflies, which constitute the other odonatan suborder, Anisoptera, but are smaller and have slimmer ...
''
**''
Euphaea
''Euphaea'' is a genus of damselfly, damselflies in the family Euphaeidae. There are more than 30 described species in ''Euphaea'', found mainly in Indomalaya.
Species
These species belong to the genus ''Euphaea'':
* ''Euphaea ameeka'' van Tol ...
''
**''
Heterophaea''
**''
Schmidtiphaea''
*''Incertae sedis''
**†''
Epallagites'' (
Green River Formation
The Green River Formation is an Eocene geologic formation that records the sedimentation in a group of intermountain lakes in three basins along the present-day Green River in Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah. The sediments are deposited in very fine ...
, Ypresian, Colorado)
References
Odonata families
{{Calopterygoidea-stub