The first fossil representative of the extant clubtail dragonfly genus Lindenia from the mid-Miocene of Öhningen, Germany

Abstract

Clubtail dragonfly Lindenia heeri sp. nov., is described and figured as the first fossil representative of the extant lindeniine genus Lindenia, based on a finely preserved forewing from the mid-Miocene lacustrine maar of Öhningen, Germany. The new species differs from the type and only species of Lindenia tetraphylla in the dark brown pterostigma covering ten cells vs. only five. Otherwise its forewing venation is identical to that of the modern species. The paleoclimatic data fit well with the climatic preferences of extant Lindenia tetraphylla, consistent with the generally warmer climate of that region during that period of time, allowing for more Mediterranean or even subtropical elements of the flora and fauna to persist.

Keywords

• insecta
• odonata
• anisoptera
• gomphidae
• lindeniinae
• fossil record
• miocene
• germany