A mosquito’s last supper reminds us not to underestimate the fossil record

Sperm lengths of non‐marine cypridoidean ostracods (Crustacea)

“…the Cytheroidea) always had short sperms, or whether their sperms have become shorter over time. Increasing numbers of studies on arthropod faunas with soft part preservation [see also commentary by Briggs ()] suggest it is likely that intensive research will result in the much more frequent discovery of preserved internal organs. As shown by Matzke‐Karasz et al .…”

Sperm lengths of non‐marine cypridoidean ostracods (Crustacea)

“…the Cytheroidea) always had short sperms, or whether their sperms have become shorter over time. Increasing numbers of studies on arthropod faunas with soft part preservation [see also commentary by Briggs ()] suggest it is likely that intensive research will result in the much more frequent discovery of preserved internal organs. As shown by Matzke‐Karasz et al .…”

Mosquito phytophagy – sources exploited, ecological function, and evolutionary transition to haematophagy

“…The ancient mecopteran‐like insects currently believed to be the ancestors of the Diptera possessed mandibular mouthparts and may have been entomophagous (Waage, ), comparable to the modern‐day entomophagous insects that also feed on aphid honeydew or nectar from extra‐floral nectaries (Way, ; Heil, ). Fossil records of early mosquitoes are sparse (Poinar et al, ; Borkent & Grimaldi, , ; Briggs, ) and lack useful information, although it does seem that vertebrate blood‐feeding mosquitoes existed at least 46 million years ago (Greenwalt et al, ). The appearance of lepidopterans in the fossil record prior to the currently accepted arrival date of angiosperms (van Eldijk et al, ) also raises the intriguing possibility that nectar‐like substances may have been sufficiently common to allow for adaptive radiation based on plant‐derived food‐sources prior to the appearance of floral nectaries.…”

Preservation of mandibular zinc in a beetle from the Eocene Kishenehn Formation of Montana, USA

“…The middle Eocene Kishenehn Formation in Montana, U.S.A., is a large lacustrine deposit exposed along the Flathead River in northwestern Montana. Its insect fossils exhibit exceptional preservation as evidenced by the apparent preservation of color and, in a fossil of a blood-engorged mosquito, the pigment heme, presumably derived from host blood (Briggs 2013;Greenwalt and Labandeira 2013;Greenwalt et al 2013). The geological record is replete with complex organic molecules, mostly of eukaryotic origin.…”

Sperm lengths of non‐marine cypridoidean ostracods (Crustacea)

“…the Cytheroidea) always had short sperms, or whether their sperms have become shorter over time. Increasing numbers of studies on arthropod faunas with soft part preservation [see also commentary by Briggs ()] suggest it is likely that intensive research will result in the much more frequent discovery of preserved internal organs. As shown by Matzke‐Karasz et al .…”

Mosquito phytophagy – sources exploited, ecological function, and evolutionary transition to haematophagy

“…The ancient mecopteran‐like insects currently believed to be the ancestors of the Diptera possessed mandibular mouthparts and may have been entomophagous (Waage, ), comparable to the modern‐day entomophagous insects that also feed on aphid honeydew or nectar from extra‐floral nectaries (Way, ; Heil, ). Fossil records of early mosquitoes are sparse (Poinar et al, ; Borkent & Grimaldi, , ; Briggs, ) and lack useful information, although it does seem that vertebrate blood‐feeding mosquitoes existed at least 46 million years ago (Greenwalt et al, ). The appearance of lepidopterans in the fossil record prior to the currently accepted arrival date of angiosperms (van Eldijk et al, ) also raises the intriguing possibility that nectar‐like substances may have been sufficiently common to allow for adaptive radiation based on plant‐derived food‐sources prior to the appearance of floral nectaries.…”

Preservation of mandibular zinc in a beetle from the Eocene Kishenehn Formation of Montana, USA

“…The middle Eocene Kishenehn Formation in Montana, U.S.A., is a large lacustrine deposit exposed along the Flathead River in northwestern Montana. Its insect fossils exhibit exceptional preservation as evidenced by the apparent preservation of color and, in a fossil of a blood-engorged mosquito, the pigment heme, presumably derived from host blood (Briggs 2013;Greenwalt and Labandeira 2013;Greenwalt et al 2013). The geological record is replete with complex organic molecules, mostly of eukaryotic origin.…”

Sperm lengths of non‐marine cypridoidean ostracods (Crustacea)

“…the Cytheroidea) always had short sperms, or whether their sperms have become shorter over time. Increasing numbers of studies on arthropod faunas with soft part preservation [see also commentary by Briggs ()] suggest it is likely that intensive research will result in the much more frequent discovery of preserved internal organs. As shown by Matzke‐Karasz et al .…”

Mosquito phytophagy – sources exploited, ecological function, and evolutionary transition to haematophagy

“…The ancient mecopteran‐like insects currently believed to be the ancestors of the Diptera possessed mandibular mouthparts and may have been entomophagous (Waage, ), comparable to the modern‐day entomophagous insects that also feed on aphid honeydew or nectar from extra‐floral nectaries (Way, ; Heil, ). Fossil records of early mosquitoes are sparse (Poinar et al, ; Borkent & Grimaldi, , ; Briggs, ) and lack useful information, although it does seem that vertebrate blood‐feeding mosquitoes existed at least 46 million years ago (Greenwalt et al, ). The appearance of lepidopterans in the fossil record prior to the currently accepted arrival date of angiosperms (van Eldijk et al, ) also raises the intriguing possibility that nectar‐like substances may have been sufficiently common to allow for adaptive radiation based on plant‐derived food‐sources prior to the appearance of floral nectaries.…”

Preservation of mandibular zinc in a beetle from the Eocene Kishenehn Formation of Montana, USA

“…The middle Eocene Kishenehn Formation in Montana, U.S.A., is a large lacustrine deposit exposed along the Flathead River in northwestern Montana. Its insect fossils exhibit exceptional preservation as evidenced by the apparent preservation of color and, in a fossil of a blood-engorged mosquito, the pigment heme, presumably derived from host blood (Briggs 2013;Greenwalt and Labandeira 2013;Greenwalt et al 2013). The geological record is replete with complex organic molecules, mostly of eukaryotic origin.…”