Notoatherix Oberprieler & Yeates, gen. nov

Genus Notoatherix Oberprieler & Yeates gen. nov. (Figs 1 & 2) Type species. Notoatherix antiqua Oberprieler & Yeates, sp. nov. Diagnosis. Only a single wing blade is preserved, with the anterior base obscured. R 1 and R 2 + 3 relatively straight, R 2 + 3 meeting R 1 at costa. R 4 + 5 proximally straight, then weakly curved upwards posteriorly, meeting costa of wing just before apex. Crossvein r-m almost in middle of cell d, but tending slightly towards its basal end. Vein M 1 sinuous at base, remainder almost straight, meeting wing margin just behind wing apex. M 2 relatively straight, meeting wing margin. Crossvein m-m closing cell d at level of origin of M 1. Species included. Type species only. Remarks. Venational features characteristic of the Athericidae were defined by Stuckenberg (1973). The diagnostic feature of the family, the close terminal convergence of veins R 1 and R 2 + 3, occurs in Notoatherix. In addition, crossvein r-m meets the discal cell further from its basal end, another feature to distinguish rhagionids and athericids used by Stuckenberg (1973). Two other features of many athericids, veins R 4 and R 5 diverging at a far smaller angle than in rhagionids and tabanids, and R 4 ending before the tip of the wing (Stuckenberg 1973), do not occur in Notoatherix because R 4 and R 5 are fused throughout their length. Mostovski et al. (2003) reported that the conformation of R 4 and R 5 is more variable in the fossil record of the three families than in extant forms. Notoatherix dates to an age when these three families are believed to have diverged (Wiegmann et al. 2011) and could possess a venation different from that of the current Athericidae crown group. FIGURE 2. Line drawing of wing of venation of Notoatherix antiqua gen. et sp. nov., holotype; composite, from part and counterpart. Abbreviations: C = costa; Sc = subcosta; R = radius; R 2 + 3 = anterior branch of the radial sector; R 4 + 5 = posterior branch of the radial sector; M 1, M 2 = anterior (sectoral) branches of media; M 3 = posterior (sectoral) branch of media; CuA 1, CuA 2 = anterior branches of cubitus; A = anal vein; r-m = radial to medial cross-vein; m-m = medial to medial cross-vein; m-cu = medial to cubital cross-vein; d = discal cell; br = first basal cell; bm = second basal cell; m 1-3 = first to fourth medial cells; cua 1 = anterior cubital cell; cup = posterior cubital cell.