Léa Grauvogel-Stamm

The Ephemeridea (Insecta) from the Grès à Voltzia (early Middle Triassic) of the Vosges (NE France)

The study of the Ephemeridea (385 specimens) of theGrauvogel andGall collection from the Grès à Voltzia (early Middle Triassic) of the Vosges, NE France, enabled the description of two new genera based on wings and six new genera based on nymphs. The new monotypic wing genera areToxodotes coloratus n. gen. n. sp. (Toxodotidae n. fam.) andTriassodotes vogesiacus n. gen. n. sp. (family MisthodotidaeSellards). The Misthodotidae, known until now only from the Permian, crossed the Permian/Triassic boundary and did not seem to have been affected by the end-Permian biotic crisis. Apart from the genera based on wings, six new monotypic genera are represented by nymphs only:Triassoephemera punctata n. gen. n. sp. (Triassoephemeridae n. fam.);Voltziaephemera fossoria n. gen. n. sp. (Voltziaephemeridae n. fam.), the most common species in the Grès à Voltzia;Triassomanthus parvulus n. gen. n. sp. (Triassomanthidae n. fam.);Triassonurus doliiformis n. gen. n. sp. (family SiphlonuridaeUlmer), now the oldest record of this family;Minorella virgata n. gen. n. sp. (family undetermined);Vogesonympha ludovici n. gen. n. sp. (Vogesonymphidae n. fam., Pterygota incertae sedis). Additionally,Mesoplectopteron longipes (Handlirsch) (family MesoplectopteridaeDemoulin) which was described earlier, is also present in theGrauvogel &Gall collection. The morphology of the Ephemeridea nymphs, at least for some of them, enables the interpretation of their probable habitats and life conditions, and thus contributes to our knowledge of the Grès à Voltzia palaeoenvironment.KurzfassungDie Untersuchung der Ephemeridea (385 Exemplare) derGrauvogel undGall Sammlungen aus dem Grès à Voltzia (frühe Mittel-Trias) der Vogesen, NE Frankreich ermöglicht die Aufstellung und Beschreibung von zwei neuen monotypischen Gattungen basierend auf der Flügel-Morphologie und sechs neuen monotypischen Gattungen basierend auf den Nymphen. Die neuen Flügel-Gattungen sindToxodotes coloratus n. gen. n. sp. (Toxodotidae n. fam.) undTriassodotes vogesiacus n. gen. n. sp. (Familie Misthodotidae). Die Misthodotidae, bisher nur aus dem Perm bekannt, überschritten die Perm/Trias-Grenze und scheinen von der biotischen Krise am Ende des Perms nicht beeinflusst worden zu sein. Die 6 monotypischen auf Nymphen basierenden Gattungen sindTriassoephemera punctata n. gen. n. sp. (Triassoephemeridae n. fam.);Voltziaephemera fossoria n. gen. n. sp. (Voltziaephemeridae n. fam.), die häufigste Art im Grès à Voltzia;Triassomanthus parvulus n. gen. n. sp. (Triassomanthidae n. fam.);Triassonurus doliiformis n. gen. n. sp. (Familie SiphlonuridaeUlmer), der hiermit älteste Nachweis der Familie;Minorella virgata n. gen. n. sp. (Familie unbestimmt);Vogesonympha ludovici n. gen. n. sp. (Vogesonymphidae n. fam., Pterygota incertae sedis).Mesoplectopteron longipes (Handlirsch, 1918) (Familie MesoplectopteridaeDemoulin), bereits vorher beschrieben, ist in derGrauvogel &Gall Sammlung ebenfalls vertreten. Die Morphologie einiger Ephemeridea-Nymphen erlaubt die Interpretation ihres möglichen Habitats and ihrer Lebensweise und trägt damit zur Kenntnis der Umweltbedingungen während der Ablagerung des Grès à Voltzia bei.

Arborescent gymnosperms and the occurrence of Protopitys from the Lower Carboniferous of the Vosges, France

Abstract Permineralized trunks of five different gymnospermous taxa have been collected in the Lower Carboniferous (Visean) of the southern Vosges. Some specimens are comparable to species previously discovered in this area and may be attributed to the genera Pitus and Eristophyton known from localities in Scotland and Silesia. The fifth type corresponds to the progymnosperm Protopitys which is recorded for the first time in the Vosges. Present evidence suggests an important taxonomic diversification of the arborescent gymnospermous element of the Visean vegetation which was similar in contemporaneous volcanic environments in the Vosges and Scotland.

The oldest occurrence of immature Diptera (Insecta), Middle Triassic, France

Abstract The oldest fossil Diptera are known from the Grès à Voltzia Formation (Upper Buntsandstein) of the northern Vosges Mountains (northeastern France), the age of which is early Anisian (early Middle Triassic). Six monotypic genera assigned to all the major lineages of Diptera (except for the Culicomorpha) were described from these beds based on adults (Krzeminski et al. 1994; Krzeminski & Krzeminska 2003). Immature Diptera also occur in the Grès à Voltzia (ca 30 specimens). Pupae are abundant whereas the larvae are extremely rare. The most numerous and well-preserved pupal type has been assigned to Voltziapupa n. gen. (V. tentata n. sp. and V. cornuta n. sp.). These pupae display plesiomorphic characters combined with possibly derived ones. Among the larvae, Anisinodus crinitus n. gen., n. sp. shows culicomorph features. It represents the earliest Culicomorpha (Chironomoidea inc. fam.) known up to date. The other types of dipteran immatures (six pupal and two larval ones) occurring in the Grès à Voltzia are less well preserved, so that their systematic position is difficult to determine and they have been assigned to the Nematocera incertae sedis. These immature Diptera are the first ones recorded from the Triassic.

Der Voltzien-Sandstein, Ablagerungen eines Deltas im frühen Mesozoikum (Trias, Anis) Nordost-Frankreichs

Im Osten Frankreichs werden die Sandsteine des Buntsandsteins seit der Antike zum Bau von Befestigungsanlagen und Denkmalern benutzt. Seit dem Mittelalter richtete sich das Augenmerk der Baumeister bevorzugt auf den oberen Teil der Formation, den Voltzien-Sandstein, dessen feinkornige Sandsteine ohne harte Gerolle sich hervorragend als Bausteine und fur Bildhauerarbeiten eignen. Das zwischen 1190 und 1439 erbaute Strassburger Munister ist das leuchtendste Beispiel fur die Qualitat des verwandten Baustoffs und die Fahigkeit der steinverarbeitenden Handwerker.