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Psyche 
[December 
from the Megasecoptera, to which he had previously assigned it : first, 
the resting position of the wings (along the abdomen, as shown in 
the type of superha) ; and second, the presence of an anal lobe on the 
hind wing. The latter characteristic does not actually exist in the 
fossil — Handlirsch simply incorrectly interpreted the photograph of 
super ha published by Meunier. But as to the resting position of the 
wings, there can be no question. 4 
The Order Diaphanopterodea has not generally been accepted by 
students of fossil insects, the Diaphanopteridae being placed in the 
Order Megasecoptera, as previously. In recent years, however, several 
families apparently related to the Diaphanopteridae have been de- 
scribed from Upper Carboniferous strata of the Soviet Union and 
North America. These fossils, which have in the past been included 
in the Megasecoptera along with Diaphanoptera , furnish evidence 
which supports the validity of the Order Diaphanopterodea. In 1961, 
during my visit to the Institute of Paleozoology at Moscow, I discussed 
the question of the Diaphanopterodea with the staff of the Institute 
(Drs. Rohdendorf, Martynova, Sharov, and their associates) and 
learned that they also were convinced of the validity of the Order 
Diaphanopterodea. In their subsequent publication, Osnovy (1962), 
the order is treated as consisting of twelve families. However, since 
this work includes no discussion of the reasons for recognizing the 
order or of the general question of its relationships, I am presenting 
here my own views on the order and an account of the puzzling mor- 
phological features of the insects in this group. 
The following are the families which now appear to belong to 1 the 
Diaphanopterodea, in addition to Diaphanopteridae : 
1. Prochoropteridae Handlirsch, 1911 (emend. Carpenter, 1940) 
[Upper Carboniferous, North America]. The genus Prochoroptera 
Handlirsch is based on a single specimen showing the wings held over 
the abdomen, as in Diaphanoptera, and indicating vague outlines of 
the abdomen, which bears what appears to be the basal part of a large 
ovipositor. It was placed by him in the Megasecoptera in 1911 and 
again in 1919, although the Order Diaphanopterodea was therein 
erected for Diaphanoptera on the wing position. Haupt (1941) 
established the Order Palaeohymenoptera for Prochoroptera but gave 
no reasons for connecting the genus with the hymenopterous line of 
insects; like Handlirsch, he did not associate it with the Diaphanop- 
4 Handlirsch (1919) treated this difference in wing position as ordinal only 
and not as indicating a major development in the evolution of insects. Marty- 
nov (1923) and Crampton (1924) were the first to propose independently the 
concept of the Palaeoptera and Neoptera ( Archipterygota and Neopterygota 
of Crampton). 
