Palaeoentomology

Discovery of the first fossil wasp (Hymenoptera: Dryinoidea: Embolemidae) from late middle Eocene Anglesea amber, Southeastern Australia

2024-10-17T20:33:15+13:00

Embolemidae (Hymenoptera: Dryinoidea) are enigmatic parasitoid wasps belonging to the infraorder of Aculeata. Traditionally, Embolemidae had been classified within the superfamily Chrysidoidea, along with the extant families Bethylidae, Chrysididae, Dryinidae, Plumariidae, Sclerogibbidae, and Scolebythidae (Carpenter, 1999). However, recent phylogenetic studies questioned the monophyly of the superfamily Chrysidoidea, resulting in separating the clade of Dryinidae, Sclerogibbidae, and Embolemidae as either the sister-lineage of Aculeata s.s. (Branstetter et al., 2017, Blaimer et al., 2023) or as an early-diverging lineage sister-group to all other aculeate families (Pauli et al., 2021). Thus, the three families, including Embolemidae, are considered as a distinct superfamily of aculeate wasps, the Dryinoidea (Lepeco & Melo, 2024; Zhang et al., 2024). Currently, the family Embolemidae consists of four genera (Embolemus Westwood, 1833 ; Ampulicomorpha Ashmead, 1893 ; Baissobius Rasnitsyn, 1975 ; Embolemopsis Olmi et al., 2010) distributed in all zoogeographical regions (Guglielmino et al., 2013). Although, this family has largely been revised (e.g., Amarante et al., 1999; Achterberg & Kats, 2000; Azevedo & Amarante, 2006; Perrichot & Engel, 2011; Olmi et al., 2020), limited knowledge exists about its present biology and its fossil record (Perkovsky & Rasnitsyn, 2013).

**A new species of genus Tingiometra from mid-Cretaceous Kachin amber (Heteroptera: Tingidae: Tingiometrinae)**

2024-09-28T02:06:34+12:00

Tingidae are also known as ‘lace bugs’ because of the delicate, lace-like appearance of their pronotum and hemelytra. Currently, lace bugs (Heteroptera: Cimicomorpha: Tingidae) comprise approximately more than 2,613 species are placed in about 318 genera (Schuh & Weirauch, 2020), they are extremely important phytophagous pests from all over the world (Drake & Davis, 1960; Drake & Ruhoff, 1965). Tingidae are classified into three extant subfamilies: Tinginae; Cantacaderinae; Vianaidinae, and one extinct subfamily: Tingiometrinae. To date, 46 genera with 82 species of Tingidae are known in the fossil record (Wang et al., 2021; Kaulfuss & Heiss, 2023; Ross, 2024). The subfamily Tinginae comprises 29 genera and 46 species, Cantacaderinae includes 6 genera and 18 species, Vianaidinae consists of 2 genera and 2 species, Tingiometrinae contains 2 genera and 5 species and 7 genera and 11 species remain unassigned to any subfamily (Schuh et al., 2006; Heiss et al., 2015; Du & Yao, 2018; Popov & Golub, 2019; Golub & Heiss, 2020; Poinar & Vega, 2020; Golub et al., 2021; Wang et al., 2021; Ross, 2024), ranging from the Early Cretaceous to the Miocene. Archetingis ladinica Montagna et al., 2018, the earliest fossil record of the Tingidae is from the Middle Triassic in Switzerland, but its classification remains controversial (Wang et al., 2021).

**Clown beetles of the genus Eutriptus Wollaston, 1862 (Coleoptera: Histeridae) in Eocene Baltic amber**

2024-09-19T23:47:20+12:00

Eutriptus Wollaston, 1862 is a small histerid genus currently discontinuously distributed from the Canary Islands to the Himalayas. According to the last revision (Lackner & Kapler, 2007), the Recent fauna includes four valid species. As characterized by Lackner & Kapler (2007), the genus can be distinguished from the very similar and widely distributed in tropical Africa and South-eastern Asia genus Diplostix Bickhardt, 1921 in the presence of longitudinal meso-metasternal striae on the metasternum.

New stag beetle (Coleoptera: Lucanidae) from the Lower Cretaceous of Transbaikalia

2024-11-02T03:06:07+13:00

Stag beetles (Scarabaeoidea, Lucanidae) are a relatively large family, comprising over 1,300 extant species (Fujita, 2010). The characteristic features of Lucanidae are the presence of geniculate antennae with a pectinate club and, often, modified mandibles in males. Depending on the authors’ opinions regarding the affiliation of Paralucanus mesozoicus Nikolajev to a separate family, three or four extinct subfamilies of Lucanidae are distinguished: Protolucaninae, Paralucaninae, Ceruchitinae and Litholampriminae (Qi et al., 2022). Lucanidae are well represented in the paleontological record, with about 30 fossil species known, including representatives of all four recent subfamilies Lucaninae, Lampriminae, Syndesinae and Aesalinae. (Yu et al., 2024).

**A new species of Treintamilun (Odonata: Frenguelliidae) from the early Eocene of Laguna del Hunco, Patagonia, Argentina**

2024-12-16T09:04:00+13:00

The Frenguelliidae Petrulevičius & Nel, 2003 is an endemic family of Odonata recorded from the Eocene of Patagonia, Argentina. They are only present in the lower Eocene (52 Ma) of Laguna del Hunco, the middle Eocene (47 Ma) of Río Pichileufú, and Arroyo Chacay (no absolute dating). The family consists of four genera and six species, namely Frenguellia patagonica Petrulevičius and Nel, 2003, F. iglesiasi Petrulevičius and Nel, 2013, Treintamilun vuelvenlucha Petrulevičius, 2017, Nelala chori Petrulevičius, 2019, N. chacay Petrulevičius, 2023, and Chacayala campeona Petrulevičius, 2022.

The first record of disruptive colouration in holometabolan larvae from about 100 million-year-old Kachin amber is a lacewing larva with dark stripes on the legs

2024-05-10T19:16:47+12:00

Animals have evolved various strategies to avoid being eaten (e.g., Howland, 1974; Peterson et al., 2021). Such strategies are especially important in groups of animals that represent a large biomass and are therefore attractive aims for predators (Lindstedt et al., 2019). Holometabola, the group including beetles, bees, butterflies, and all their closer relatives, represents a vast biomass in continental ecosystems; more precisely their larval forms represent this vast biomass (Husler & Husler, 1940). These larvae are important food sources for many other groups of animals and are hence central points within the food web.

Swarming behaviour and pollination by Cretaceous thrips (Insecta: Thysanoptera)

2024-10-26T01:24:00+13:00

Direct biotic interactions fossilize in low probability and are difficult to be recognized. This is because they normally occur over a brief time span and the conditions required for their fossilization are exceptional. Swarm behaviour in Thysanoptera (thrips) is a phenomenon that is not yet fully understood but is crucial for the survival and success of representatives of this order of insects. Moreover, the role of thrips as pollinators of gymnosperms had not gained significant attention until the Recent decline in insect populations, particularly pollinators, and the consequent impact on the flora that relies on them. Here we describe a thrips assemblage in Cenomanian Kachin amber (Myanmar, ca. 99 Ma), composed of both, females and males of the new species Burmathrips engeli gen. et sp. nov., belonging to the family Stenurothripidae, that has been interpreted as a swarm. These specimens have Cycadopites-type pollen grains attached to their bodies, with additional associated grains, most likely detached, being abundant in the same amber flow, throughout the amber piece. Nowadays, hexapod aggregations are related to different activities like mating and courtship, but identifying this type of behaviour in the fossil record is difficult. This finding demonstrates the antiquity of mating-related swarming behaviour in thrips, which is consistent with that of their extant counterparts. It also provides direct evidence that gregariousness facilitated the prominent role of thrips as gymnosperm pollinators during the Cretaceous.

The oldest Carboniferous representative of the insect clade Neuropteroidea (Insecta: Holometabola)

2024-09-28T02:04:33+12:00

Westphaloneura magnifica gen. et sp. nov., the first known representative of the stem group Neuropteroidea (= Neuropterida + Coleopterida) is described from the Bashkirian/Moscovian of Northern France, in the new family Westphaloneuridae fam. nov. It is based on two forewings and an incomplete hind wing. Its forewing vein media anterior (MA) being well separated from radius/radius posterior vein (R/RP) is a putative symplesiomorphy, also present in the Coleopterida, justifying the proposed position of the fossil. This fossil is contemporaneous with the oldest known Panorpida, sister group of the Neuropteroidea, also from the same area. This first occurrence provides a new key calibration point for the divergence of two Holometabola lineages and will help time-divergence analyses.

**A new brown lacewing species of the genus Pseudonotherobius Makarkin, 2024 (Neuroptera: Hemerobiidae) from the Eocene Baltic amber**

2024-10-08T21:15:58+13:00

A new species of the lacewing family Hemerobiidae, Pseudonotherobius fenestromaculatus sp. nov., is described from the Eocene Baltic amber. The new species is assigned to Pseudonotherobius based on the following characters: the forewing RP with three ORBs, the ORB1 and CuP deeply forked, and the presence of dark brown coloration. The species can be distinguished from Pseudonotherobius kohlsi Makarkin, 2024 by the forewing membrane medially with a large dark marking from costal margin to M vein along third gradate series, and distally with a broad dark marking covering whole wing apex. Our finding provides new evidence for understanding the palaeodiversity of brown lacewings from the Tertiary.

New species and characters of Eucnemidae (Coleoptera, Elateroidea) from Myanmar amber

2024-10-08T21:19:44+13:00

Four new species of Eucnemidae are described from Cretaceous Myanmar amber: Myall ovata sp. nov., Fiegelia gracilis sp. nov., Fiegelia serraticornis sp. nov. and Fiegelia longicornis sp. nov. Based on new specimens, the diagnosis of the genus Fiegelia Muona, 2020 is revised, Cenomana annieae Hsiao & Otto, 2024 and Fiegelia tarsalis Muona, 2020 are revised. More species of derived Eucnemidae with two protibial apical spurs are discovered, indicating that the single protibial apical spur in different derived Eucnemidae lineages is a result of multiple losses of the other spur.

A new amber outcrop from the Late Cretaceous of Xingning Basin, South China

2024-12-12T14:49:12+13:00

Mesozoic amber-bearing deposits provide invaluable insights into palaeoecosystems and the evolutionary history of life. Here we report newly discovered amber from the Yetang Formation in the Xingning Basin, eastern Guangdong Province, dated to the early Late Cretaceous (late Cenomanian–Coniacian). The amber pieces are millimetric in size and predominantly exhibit a yellow-brownish hue. Biostratigraphic evidence suggests that the Xingning amber predates the recently discovered Guangzhou amber from the Dalangshan Formation. The Xingning amber is found alongside abundant fossils of gymnosperms and angiosperms, as well as diverse animal fossils, including insects, conchostracans, ostracods, bivalves, and dinosaurs, within a lacustrine setting. Together, these fossils form part of the Late Cretaceous Xingning Biota.

First records of Triassic Diptera (Insecta) from Africa

2024-11-04T13:27:48+13:00

Diptera often dominate fossil insect assemblages since the Jurassic but are much less common in the Triassic deposits, especially in the southern Pangaea, where only five species have previously been described—from Australia and Argentina. A single indeterminate Triassic dipteran from Africa has earlier been mentioned without a description. Herein, three dipteran pupae are described from the later Carnian Molteno Formation (Karoo Basin) in South Africa. One of these represents a new species of Metarchilimonia (Limoniidae), the genus previously known from the Norian Cow Branch Formation in the USA. The two other, incomplete pupae are placed in Chironomidae inc. sed. and Culicomorpha inc. sed. A complete list and a distribution map of Triassic Diptera are compiled, and the apparent geographical homogeneity of the Triassic dipterofauna is discussed.

A genome-scale phylogeny of scorpions: model comparison and modeling among-site compositional heterogeneity

2024-10-08T21:40:08+13:00

The evolutionary history of scorpions, one of the most charismatic groups of arthropods with over 2,500 described species, is a subject of great interest. Given their unique body plan and ancient fossil record, understanding their phylogeny is crucial. Recent genome-scale data have shown potential in elucidating interfamilial relationships within the scorpion tree of life; however, discrepancies between molecular datasets have also been observed. To address this, we explored the phylogenetic relationships of scorpions by synthesizing three previous phylogenomic studies using model comparison methods that account for among-site compositional heterogeneity. Our analyses indicate that under the infinite site-heterogeneous CAT and finite mixture models, the relationships within Scorpiones differ significantly from prevailing conclusions, particularly regarding the interfamilial relationships within Buthida. Our results show the following relationships: [Pseudochactoidea + [Buthoidea + Chaeriloidea]]. Our leave-one-out cross-validation analysis shows that the site-heterogeneous CAT-GTR+G model fits significantly better than the site-homogeneous model (LG) and finite mixture models (LG+C20, LG+C60), and it identifies contentious nodes in scorpion phylogeny. These analyses resolve a longstanding controversy in deep scorpion phylogeny and emphasize the significance of adequate modeling of compositional heterogeneity in reconstructing the deep phylogeny of scorpions.

Palaeoentomology: a summary of 2018–2023

2024-12-18T13:07:24+13:00

The historical background for founding Palaeoentomology was already discussed in Azar et al. (2018) and some bibliometric data were summarized in Zhang (2023). Here we share further details and our experiences in the early days during the founding of this journal in the hope that these may benefit other professional societies who may wish to develop their own journals. We updated bibliometric data to the end of 2023 and summarized new taxa described in the journal during the last six years. We also highlighted the importance of media in communicating science to the general public and outlined some minor changes in the editorial structure and process from 2025.