Taxonomic reassessment of the genera Blittersdorffia and Diegopteryx (Neuroptera, Myrmeleontidae) from the Lower Cretaceous Crato Formation with the description of three new species

Abstract

The Crato Formation in Brazil harbors over half of the world's known fossil diversity of Myrmeleontidae. However, many type specimens of taxa described from this formation were previously inaccessible. With the recent rediscovery of two Brazilian collections and the acquisition of several newly discovered, well-preserved specimens, we have revised two controversial Myrmeleontidae genera: Diegopteryx Martins-Neto & Rodrigues and Blittersdorffia Martins-Neto & Vulcano. In this study, we describe two new species of Diegopteryx and one new species of Blittersdorffia. Additionally, Blittersdorffia pulcherrima has been reassigned to Diegopteryx and D. raptoria is synonymized with B. pulcherrima. We provide updated diagnoses for both genera and an identification key for the species. We also examine the implications of these new findings for understanding the evolutionary relationships of these genera within fossil Myrmeleontidae.