1963] 
Carpenter — Diaphanoptera 
241 
Shortly after this, Meunier described (1908) as Diaphanoptera su- 
perba, a specimen which showed all four wings held back over the 
abdomen ; the venation was very clear but virtually no body parts were 
preserved. Meunier recognized that the affinites of this fossil were 
with Brongniart’s species of Diaphanoptera, but he made no comments 
in his paper on the wings being flexed over the abdomen. Lameere, 
who examined the Brongniart and Meunier specimens in Paris, noted 
(1917) that Pseudanthracothremma scudderi is very close to, if not 
the same species as, Diaphanoptera superba, reaching this conclusion 
because of the general similarity of size and form of the two fossils, 
and the nature of the fragmentary venation known in scudderi ; and 
that in both specimens of superba and scudderi the wings rest obliquely 
along the abdomen (i.e., neopterous-like) , not perpendicular to the 
body (i.e., palaeopterous-like) , as in all other Megasecoptera then 
known. Nevertheless, he continued to place Diaphanoptera in the 
Megasecoptera. Handlirsch, in his superficial revision of Palaeozoic 
insects (1919), established a new genus, Diaphanopterites, and a new 
family, Diaphanopteritidae, for Meunier’s superba. Unfortunately, 
he did not see the fossil itself and his interpretation of it was based 
entirely on Meunier’s incorrect drawing and on a small, published 
photograph. The flexed position of the wings led Handlirsch to re- 
move these diaphanopterids from the Megasecoptera and to establish 
a new order, Diaphanopteroidea, for their reception. 
As a result of my examination of the fossils mentioned above, I 
propose the following classification of the Diaphanopteridae from the 
Commentry shales. 
Order Diaphanopterodea Handlirsch 
Family Diaphanopteridae Handlirsch (synonym: Diaphanop- 
teritidae Handlirsch) 
Genus Diaphanoptera Brongniart (synonyms: Diaphanop- 
terites Handlirsch; Pseudanthracothremma Handlirsch) 
munieri Brongniart (type-species) 
vetusta Brongniart 
scudderi (Brongniart) 
superba Meunier 
The family Diaphanopteridae is also represented in Upper Carboni- 
ferous strata of the Soviet Union ; other families apparently belonging 
to the Order Diaphanopterodea have been found in Upper Carboni- 
ferous and Permian beds of the Soviet Union and the United States. 
A discussion of the characteristics and relationships of the Diaphanop- 
terodea will follow the detailed account of the Commentry fossils. 
