Locality A, Mustang Draw, Rita Blanca Lake ( of the United States)

Where: Hartley County, Texas (35.7° N, 102.4° W: paleocoordinates 35.8° N, 101.8° W)

• coordinate estimated from map

• outcrop-level geographic resolution

When: Rita Blanca Formation, Blancan (4.9 - 1.8 Ma)

• group of beds-level stratigraphic resolution

Environment/lithology: lacustrine - large; lithified, calcareous claystone

• At its maximum level, Rita Blanca Lake may have had a length of 6 miles, a width of 3.5 miles, and an area of about 16 square miles. The maximum depth of water was not much greater than 125 feet and the actual depth was probably less. Formed in wind-eroded deflation basins.

Size classes: macrofossils, mesofossils

Preservation: adpression

Reposited in the ANSP, USNM

Primary reference: J. E. Sublette. 1969. Aquatic insects of the Rita Blanca lake deposits. Paleoecology of an early Pleistocene lake on the high plains of Texas. Geological Society of America Memoir 113:117-122 [M. Clapham/M. Clapham]more details

Purpose of describing collection: taxonomic analysis

PaleoDB collection 154909: authorized by Matthew Clapham, entered by Matthew Clapham on 18.03.2014

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

Show authors, comments, and common names
Insecta
  -
Insecta indet.2
Insecta indet.2 Linnaeus 1758 insect
JE 346, B121, B300, 421, B222 (might be a leafhopper); B261, B200 (small Hemiptera?); 101 (Hymenoptera?); 132 (Nematocera cf. Tipulidae?); 79 (Aphididae?), 146
 Diptera - Chironomidae
Chironomus (Chironomus) kirklandi n. sp., "Chironomus (Endochironomus) sp." = Endochironomus, ? Tanytarsus sp., ? Orthocladiinae indet., ? Tanypodinae indet.
Chironomus (Chironomus) kirklandi n. sp. Sublette 1969 non biting midge
USNM 66660 (holotype)
"Chironomus (Endochironomus) sp." = Endochironomus Kieffer 1918 non biting midge
437
? Tanytarsus sp. van der Wulp 1874 non biting midge
250, 289
? Orthocladiinae indet. Lenz 1921 non biting midge
? Tanypodinae indet. Skuse 1889 non biting midge
B-209, C-196
 Diptera - Syrphidae
cf. Syrphus sp.2
cf. Syrphus sp.2 Fabricius 1775 hover fly
B264-B303
 Diptera -
Acalyptratae indet.2, Calyptratae indet.2
Acalyptratae indet.2 Macquart 1835 fly
335
Calyptratae indet.2 Robineau-Desvoidy 1830 fly
B226-B273
 Diptera - Bombyliidae
Bombyliidae indet.2
Bombyliidae indet.2 Latreille 1802 bee fly
B130
 Diptera - Culicidae
Aedes sp., Culex sp.
Aedes sp. Meigen 1818 mosquito
"rare occurrence"
Culex sp. Linnaeus 1758 mosquito
181
 Coleoptera - Carabidae
Carabidae indet.2, cf. Selenophorus sp.2
Carabidae indet.2 Latreille 1802 ground beetle
B302, 88, 493
cf. Selenophorus sp.2 Dejean 1829 ground beetle
214 and unnumbered
 Coleoptera - Chrysomelidae
Disonycha sp.2, cf. Phaedon sp.2
Disonycha sp.2 Chevrolat 1836 flea beetle
86, C7
cf. Phaedon sp.2 Latreille 1829 leaf beetle
B232
 Coleoptera - Curculionidae
Cleonus (Cleonidius) ritablancaensis n. sp.1, Cleonus (Cleonidius) channingensis n. sp.1
Cleonus (Cleonidius) ritablancaensis n. sp.1 Sleeper 1969 snout beetle
98, B153
Cleonus (Cleonidius) channingensis n. sp.1 Sleeper 1969 snout beetle
B248(B182)
 Coleoptera - Coccinellidae
Hippodamia ? convergens2
Hippodamia ? convergens2 Guerin-Meneville 1842 convergent lady beetle
JE 354-356
 Coleoptera - Meloidae
Lytta sp.2, Epicauta sp.2
Lytta sp.2 Fabricius 1775 blister beetle
433-481, 36-68
Epicauta sp.2 Dejean 1834 blister beetle
JE 399-JE 403
 Coleoptera - Scarabaeidae
cf. Diplotaxis sp.2
cf. Diplotaxis sp.2 Kirby 1837 scarab beetle
B100-B120
 Coleoptera - Staphylinidae
? Aleocharinae indet.2
? Aleocharinae indet.2 Fleming 1821 rove beetle
C-10
 Trichoptera - Molannidae
? Molannidae indet.
? Molannidae indet. Wallengren 1891 caddisfly
432, JE 381
 Dicondylia -
Hymenoptera indet.2
Hymenoptera indet.2 Linnaeus 1758 winged insect
35 R.C., 447, 56
 Hymenoptera -
Ichneumonoidea indet.2
Ichneumonoidea indet.2 Latreille 1802 wasp
C-6 (probably Braconidae)
 Hymenoptera - Ichneumonidae
Ichneumonidae "indet. 1"2, Ichneumonidae "indet. 2"2
Ichneumonidae "indet. 1"2 Latreille 1802 ichneumon wasp
B232
Ichneumonidae "indet. 2"2 Latreille 1802 ichneumon wasp
280
 Hymenoptera -
Apoidea indet.2
Apoidea indet.2 Latreille 1802 apoid wasp
B218, 257
 Hymenoptera - Pompilidae
Pompilidae indet.2
Pompilidae indet.2 Latreille 1804 spider wasp
JE 340-JE 357
 Hymenoptera - Thynnidae
cf. Myzinum sp.2
cf. Myzinum sp.2 Latreille 1803 wasp
171
 Hymenoptera - Formicidae
Formicidae indet.2, Myrmicinae indet.2, Formicinae indet.2, Dorylinae indet.2
Formicidae indet.2 Latreille 1802 ant
B119
Myrmicinae indet.2 Lepeletier de Saint-Fargeau 1835 ant
480
Formicinae indet.2 Latreille 1802 ant
94-C19, 78-111
Dorylinae indet.2 Leach 1815 army ant
258
 Dicondylia -
Hemiptera "indet. 1"2, Hemiptera "indet. 2"2, Hemiptera "indet. 3"2, Hemiptera "indet. 4"2
Hemiptera "indet. 1"2 Linnaeus 1758 true bug
148
Hemiptera "indet. 2"2 Linnaeus 1758 true bug
JE 397 (probably Lygaeidae or Corizidae, or Coreidae)
Hemiptera "indet. 3"2 Linnaeus 1758 true bug
B170 (most likely Lygaeidae, but Pyrrhocoridae or Corizidae possible)
Hemiptera "indet. 4"2 Linnaeus 1758 true bug
237 (probably Lygaeidae cf. Ligyrocoris)
 Hemiptera - Lygaeidae
? Nysius sp.2
? Nysius sp.2 Dallas 1851 milkweed bug
477, 173-201-B150 ("dozens"), JE 378, B192-B173, 66, B252, 60, 89, JE 367, 83, 219 R.C., 116, B269, B203, 67
 Hemiptera - Tingidae
Tingidae indet.2
Tingidae indet.2 Laporte 1833 lace bug
C-3
 Hemiptera - Cicadellidae
Cicadellidae "indet. 1"2, Cicadellidae "indet. 2"2, Cicadellidae "indet. 3"2, cf. Deltocephalinae indet.2
Cicadellidae "indet. 1"2 Latreille 1825 leafhopper
107
Cicadellidae "indet. 2"2 Latreille 1825 leafhopper
270, 102
Cicadellidae "indet. 3"2 Latreille 1825 leafhopper
JE 395, 173 ("several"), B280, B122, B204
cf. Deltocephalinae indet.2 Dallas 1870 leafhopper
JE 347, B241
 Hemiptera - Delphacidae
"? Areopodidae indet." = Delphacidae2
"? Areopodidae indet." = Delphacidae2 Leach 1815 planthopper
75
 Odonata - Aeshnidae
Aeshnidae indet.
Aeshnidae indet. Leach 1815 darner dragonfly
134, 159, 241, 311, 323, 448, B-284, JE-404, P-60-68
 Odonata - Libellulidae
Libellulidae indet.
Libellulidae indet. Rambur 1842 common skimmer
51, 120, 133, 169, 205, 318, 391, B-108, B-129, 13-137, B-149, B-152, B-191, B-215, B-223, B-308, 25R.C., 40R.C.
 Odonata - Coenagrionidae
? Coenagrionidae indet.
? Coenagrionidae indet. Kirby 1890 narrow-winged damselfly
328
1Sleeper 1969; 2Werner 1969