The first Permian Gondwanan damselfly-like Protozygoptera (Insecta, Odonatoptera)

Afrozygopteron inexpectatus gen. et sp. nov., the oldest known representative of the protozygopteran grade from Gondwana, is described from the Guadalupian of Southern Africa. It is attributed to the family Luiseiidae, previously only known by one genus and species, Luiseia breviata described from the Carboniferous/Permian boundary of New Mexico (USA). This new fossil demonstrates that during the Carboniferous/Permian, the Protozygoptera were probably much more widely distributed than previously thought and were not limited to the northern part of Pangea.

Automated summary

This article describes the fossil of Afrozygopteron inexpectatus, indicating that the Protozygoptera were more widely distributed during the Carboniferous/Permian than previously believed.