Steleopteron cretacicus
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| Steleopteron cretacicus Temporal range: | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Odonata |
| Suborder: | Zygoptera |
| Family: | †Steleopteridae |
| Genus: | †Steleopteron |
| Species: | †S. cretacicus |
| Binomial name | |
| †Steleopteron cretacicus Zheng, Nel & Jarzembowski, 2018 | |
Steleopteron cretacicus (lat.) is a species of extinct winged damselfly from the Jurassic family Steleopteridae that lived in modern Britain during the Early Cretaceous era (136.4–130 million years ago).[1] It is the first member of the Steleopteridae family, to be found living during the Cretaceous period, to be described,[2] and belongs to the genus Steleopteron. There is a sister taxon – Steleopteron deichmuelleri.[1]
The discovery of the species showed that the family Steleopteridae had not died out by the Cretaceous period.[2] These damselflies were fast insectivorous predators.[1]
The species name refers to the fact that the species existed in the Cretaceous period.[2]
