Pelretes bicolor sp. nov., a new short-winged flower beetle (Coleoptera: Kateretidae) from mid-Cretaceous amber of northern Myanmar

A New Subgenus of the Genus Phenolia (Coleoptera, Nitidulidae) from Myanmar Cretaceous Amber with Taxonomic, Phylogenetic and Bionomic Notes on the ‘Nitidulid’ Group of Families

“…As this group (here treated a separate family Apophisandridae stat. nov.) is quite abundant among beetles included in Burmese amber, many researchers followed Poinar and Brown [26], and some publications appeared in a rather short period [27][28][29][30][31][32]. However, one genus of this group was recently described among Nitidulidae [35].…”

“…Composition. Type genus (Apophisandra Molino-Olmedo, 2017 with A. ammytae Molino-Olmedo, 2017 [34]) and eight other genera: Cretaretes Peris and Jelínek, 2020 with C. minimus Peris and Jelínek, 2020 [28], Electrumeretes Peris and Jelínek, 2020 with E. birmanicus Peris and Jelínek, 2020 [27], Furcalabratum Poinar and Brown, 2018 with F. burmanicum Poinar and Brown, 2018 [26], Pelretes Tihelka, Li, Fu, Su, Huang and Cai, 2021 with P. bicolor Zhao, Tihelka, Huang and Cai, 202 [30] and P. vivificus Tihelka, Li, Fu, Su, Huang and Cai, 2021 [29], Polliniretes Peris and Jelínek, 2020 with P. penalveri Peris and Jelínek, 2020 [27], Protokateretes Zhao, Huang and Cai, 2023 with P. antiquus (Peris and Jelínek, 2020) ( [30]: (Eoceniretes), [32]) and P. megalocephalus Zhao, Huang and Cai, 2023 [30], Protonitidula Zhao, Huang and Cai 2022 with P. neli Zhao, Huang and Cai 2022 [35] and Scaporetes Zhao, Huang and Cai 2023 with S. rectus Zhao, Huang and Cai 2023 [32]. All mentioned genera were proposed for the species originated from the Albian/Cenomanian Burmese amber.…”

“…nov., is proposed within this family for the genus Cretoparacucujus Cai, Escalona, Li, Huang, and Engel 2018 [25], initially placed in Boganiidae. Some fossil 'kateretid' genera are currently described [26][27][28][29][30][31][32], and some of them are tentatively considered as pollinators. At the time, some probable evidence of plant counter adaptation for 'cantharophily' in the description of a cockroach nectarivory was published [33].…”

A New Genus of Sap Beetles (Coleoptera: Nitidulidae) from Mid-Cretaceous Amber of Northern Myanmar

“…Kateretids are currently important pollinators of angiosperms, as are many species of Nitidulidae. Recent fossil studies have demonstrated that kateretids may have been one of the earliest insects that pollinated early angiosperms, which possibly originated when angiosperms began to flourish during the Cretaceous [ 6 , 7 , 8 ]. As such, the Mesozoic record of Nitidulidae and Kateretidae from exceptional biotas such as the Burmese amber may provide new insights into the co-evolution of insects and plants.…”