A remarkable new genus of basal snakeflies (Insecta: Raphidioptera: Priscaenigmatomorpha) from the Early Cretaceous of China

Chrysoraphidia relicta gen. et sp. nov. is described from the Early Cretaceous (Barremian) of the Yixian Formation, Liaoning Province, China. Its venation is characterized by a mixture of character states that occur mainly in the Neuroptera and Raphidioptera. The assignment of Chrysoraphidia gen. nov. to Raphidioptera is supported by the presence of its distinct pterostigma and the configuration of the wing vein ‘subcosta anterior’. It is interpreted as the first record of a group of basal snakeflies (Priscaenigmatomorpha) from the Cretaceous of Asia, hitherto known only from the Early Jurassic of Europe.