Ontogenetic development captured in amber - the first record of aquatic representatives of Isopoda in Cretaceous amber from Myanmar

Schädel, Mario; Hyžný, Matúš; Haug, Joachim T.

doi:10.1590/2358-2936e2021003

Cited by 5 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 85 publications

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“…Wichard et al, 2009) it indeed appears that in certain amber types aquatic organisms are preserved in situ (e.g. Schmidt et al, 2018;Xing et al, 2018;Yang et al, 2019;Zhao et al,2019;Gustafson et al, 2020;Wang et al, 2020;Schädel et al, 2020Schädel et al, , 2021aSchädel et al, , 2021bHaug et al, 2021c;Baranov et al, 2022). Also Mexican amber is well known to preserve aquatic organisms (Huys et al, 2016 Matzke-Karasz et al, 2019).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A small beetle larva preserved in 23-million-year-old Mexican amber: possible first fossil record of an immature variegated mud-loving beetle

Zippel¹,

Haug²,

Gauweiler³

et al. 2022

BSGM

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Beetles occupy a vast amount of different ecological roles in both terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems. The often very specialised morphology of the adults can frequently be associated with their specific roles. Yet, the ecologically independent larvae of the same species are often unknown; this applies even more so to fossils. Here we report a new fossil beetle larva preserved in Mexican amber. The beetle larva was documented via digital microscopy and X-ray micro-computed tomography (X-ray µCT). The observed features, especially of the trunk, but also the maxillo-labial complex as well as the moulting suture of the head capsule are reminiscent to those of larvae of variegated mud-loving beetles, Heteroceridae. The trunk end is tube-like and protrudes ventro-terminally from abdomen segment 9. While present in other beetle lineages, this morphology is in these lineages, for example, not combined with a simple moulting suture. Some features potentially further supporting an interpretation as a larva of Heteroceridae are not accessible. The interpretation yet remains the most compatible one. Assuming a similar life style to modern larvae of Heteroceridae indicates an original lifestyle associated with running waters, but not within these. Heteroceridae is an ingroup of Byrrhoidea; the fossil record of byrrhoidean larvae is still very scarce. The new fossil hence adds a rare ecological function to the Miocene amber fauna, representing the first fossil record of a larva of Heteroceridae and expanding the fossil record of byrrhoidean larvae.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A small beetle larva preserved in 23-million-year-old Mexican amber: possible first fossil record of an immature variegated mud-loving beetle

Zippel¹,

Haug²,

Gauweiler³

et al. 2022

BSGM

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Mass occurrence of small isopodan crustaceans in 100-million-year-old amber: an extraordinary view on behaviour of extinct organisms

Schädel

Hörnig

Hyžný

et al. 2021

PalZ

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Within Isopoda (woodlice and relatives), there are lineages characterised by a parasitic lifestyle that all belong to Cymothoida and likely form a monophyletic group. Representatives of Epicaridea (ingroup of Cymothoida) are parasitic on crustaceans and usually go through three distinct larval stages. The fossil record of Epicaridea is sparse and thus little is known about the palaeoecology and the origin of the complex life cycle of modern epicarideans. We present an assemblage of over 100 epicarideans preserved in a single piece of Late Cretaceous Myanmar amber. All individuals are morphologically similar to cryptoniscium stage larvae. The cryptoniscium stage usually constitutes the third and last larval stage. In modern representatives of Epicaridea, the cryptoniscium larvae are planktic and search for suitable host animals or adult females. These fossil specimens, though similar to some extant species, differ from other fossil epicaridean larvae in many aspects. Thus, a new species (and a new genus), Cryptolacruma nidis, is erected. Several factors can favour the preservation of multiple conspecific animals in a single piece of amber. However, the enormous density of epicarideans in the herein presented amber piece can only be explained by circumstances that result in high local densities of individuals, close to the resin-producing tree.

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The First Reconstruction of the Head Anatomy of a Cretaceous Insect, †Gerontoformica gracilis(Hymenoptera: Formicidae), and the Early Evolution of Ants

Richter

Boudinot

Yamamoto

et al. 2022

Insect Systematics and Diversity

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The fossil record allows a unique glimpse into the evolutionary history of organisms living on Earth today. We discovered a specimen of the stem group ant †Gerontoformica gracilis (Barden and Grimaldi, 2014) in Kachin amber with near-complete preservation of internal head structures, which we document employing µ-computed-tomography-based 3D reconstructions. We compare †Gerontoformica to four outgroup taxa and four extant ant species, employing parsimony and Bayesian ancestral state reconstruction to identify morphological differences and similarities between stem and crown ants and thus improve our understanding of ant evolution through the lens of head anatomy. Of 149 morphological characters, 87 are new in this study, and almost all applicable to the fossil. †Gerontoformica gracilis shares shortened dorsal tentorial arms, basally angled pedicels, and the pharyngeal gland as apomorphies with other total clade Formicidae. Retained plesiomorphies include mandible shape and features of the prepharynx. Implications of the reconstructed transitions especially for the ant groundplan are critically discussed based on our restricted taxon sampling, emphasizing the crucial information derived from internal anatomy which is applied to deep time for the first time. Based on the falcate mandible in †Gerontoformica and other Aculeata, we present hypotheses for how the shovel-shaped mandibles in crown Formicidae could have evolved. Our results support the notion of †Gerontoformica as ‘generalized’ above-ground predator missing crucial novelties of crown ants which may have helped the latter survive the end-Cretaceous extinction. Our study is an important step for anatomical research on Cretaceous insects and a glimpse into the early evolution of ant heads.

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Ontogenetic development captured in amber - the first record of aquatic representatives of Isopoda in Cretaceous amber from Myanmar

Cited by 5 publications

References 85 publications

A small beetle larva preserved in 23-million-year-old Mexican amber: possible first fossil record of an immature variegated mud-loving beetle

A small beetle larva preserved in 23-million-year-old Mexican amber: possible first fossil record of an immature variegated mud-loving beetle

Mass occurrence of small isopodan crustaceans in 100-million-year-old amber: an extraordinary view on behaviour of extinct organisms

The First Reconstruction of the Head Anatomy of a Cretaceous Insect, †Gerontoformica gracilis(Hymenoptera: Formicidae), and the Early Evolution of Ants

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