Genus Rainieria Rondani, 1843

Rainieria Rondani, 1843: 40 .

Type species: Calobata calceata Fallén, 1820

Diagnosis. Palearctic Rainieria can be distinguished by the following characteristics: Medium-sized (7–9mm), elongate Taeniapterinae, generally dark brown to black in coloration; head globose, frontal vitta velvety black, most wide before ocelli, tapering and anteriorly and posterior to ocelli; ocellar plate small and black, in line with or anteriorly located with the orbital bristle; palpus black microsetulose, broad but gradually tapering apically; clypeus shining, bare; one to three similarly well-developed frontal bristles; strong, well-developed inner vertical, outer vertical, and postocellar bristles; fore tarsomeres white; femur dark brown and often with brown preapical band; wings evenly infuscate and often with a dark discal band (Fig. 8C–D) male S5 of known species variable, inner surface of each arm with dense, short and strong setae (Fig. 5); phallic bulb distinct, ovate; distal distiphallus not surpassing the basal margin of hypandrium, its end usually bluntly rounded without apical swelling.

Distribution and diversity. This genus shows a Holarctic distribution, with exception of subtropical R. boninensis (Hennig) known only from Ogasawara Islands, Japan (Aczél 1959, Soós 1984). There are 8 species recognized in this genus, and in the Palearctic region there are 6 species including one newly described here (Hennig 1938, Soós 1984, Krivosheina & Krivosheina 1996). Species described in the Neotropical region previously treated as Rainieria belong in other genera (S. Marshall, pers. comm.), and thus excluded here.

Discussion. Species known from Madagascar were recently reclassified as Afrotropical Paramimegralla Hennig (Marshall 2017) .