The earliest Timematids in Burmese amber reveal diverse tarsal pads of stick insects in the mid-Cretaceous

New Fossil Tingidae (Hemiptera: Heteroptera) from the Mid-Cretaceous of Myanmar, with Remarks on the Phylogenetic Relationships within the Family

A new genus and species, Latidorsum carinbifarium Wang, Tang & Yao gen. et sp. nov., is assigned to Phatnomatini (Tinginae), which is described from the mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber. A parsimonious analysis based on 50 morphological characters with 26 terminals clarifies the phylogenetic status of the new fossils and examined relationships among the presently analysed genera of the family Tingidae. The resulting cladogram supporting Tingidae are reconfirmed as monophyletic and divided into four main clades, with relationships as follows: (Vianaidinae + ((Burmacader multivenosus + Burmavianaida anomalocapitata) + (Sinaldocader rasnitsyni + (Gyaclavator kohlsi + Tinginae + Cantacaderinae)))). Anterior length of bucculae distinctly projecting in front of head, sometimes in contact is not a synapomorphic character for Cantacaderinae, which evolves in parallel in Tinginae and Cantacaderinae.

On the value of Burmese amber for understanding insect evolution: Insights from †Heterobathmilla - an exceptional stem group genus of Strepsiptera (Insecta)

Burmese amber and amber from other periods and regions became a rich source of new extinct insect species and yielded important insights in insect evolution in the dimension of time. Amber fossils have contributed to the understanding of the phylogeny, biology, and biogeography of insects and other groups, and have also gained great importance for dating molecular trees. Another major potential is the documentation of faunal, floral and climatic shifts. Evolutionary transitions can be well-documented in amber fossils and can reveal anatomical transformations and the age of appearance of structural features. Here, using a new stem group species of Strepsiptera from Burmite, we evaluate this potential of amber insect fossils to assess the current phylogeny of Strepsiptera, with the main emphasis on the early splitting events in the stem group. Amber fossils have greatly contributed to the understanding of the evolution of Strepsiptera in the late Mesozoic and the Cenozoic. †Heterobathmilla kakopoios Pohl and Beutel gen. et sp. n. described here is placed in the stem group of the order, in a clade with †Kinzelbachilla (†Kinzelbachillidae) and †Phthanoxenos (†Phthanoxenidae). †Phthanoxenidae has priority over †Kinzelbachillidae, and the latter is synonymised. The superb details available from this new fossil allowed us to explore unique features of the antennae, mouthparts, and male copulatory apparatus, and to provide a phylogenetic hypothesis for the order. The younger †Protoxenos from Eocene Baltic amber was confirmed as sister to all remaining extinct and extant groups of Strepsiptera, whereas the position of the Cretaceous †Cretostylops in the stem group remains ambivalent. While the value of Burmite and amber from other periods has a recognized impact on our knowledge of the evolution in various lineages, this new fossil does not fundamentally change our picture of the phylogeny and evolution of early Strepsiptera. However, it offers new insights into the morphological diversity in the early evolution of the group.

Integrated phylogenomic and fossil evidence of stick and leaf insects (Phasmatodea) reveal a Permian-Triassic co-origination with insectivores

Stick and leaf insects (Phasmatodea) are a distinctive insect order whose members are characterized by mimicking various plant tissues such as twigs, foliage and bark. Unfortunately, the phylogenetic relationships among phasmatodean subfamilies and the timescale of their evolution remain uncertain. Recent molecular clock analyses have suggested a Cretaceous-Palaeogene origin of crown Phasmatodea and a subsequent Cenozoic radiation, contrasting with fossil evidence. Here, we analysed transcriptomic data from a broad diversity of phasmatodeans and, combined with the assembly of a new suite of fossil calibrations, we elucidate the evolutionary history of stick and leaf insects. Our results differ from recent studies in the position of the leaf insects (Phylliinae), which are recovered as sister to a clade comprising Clitumninae, Lancerocercata, Lonchodinae, Necrosciinae and Xenophasmina. We recover a Permian to Triassic origin of crown Phasmatodea coinciding with the radiation of early insectivorous parareptiles, amphibians and synapsids. Aschiphasmatinae and Neophasmatodea diverged in the Jurassic-Early Cretaceous. A second spur in origination occurred in the Late Cretaceous, coinciding with the Cretaceous Terrestrial Revolution, and was probably driven by visual predators such as stem birds (Enantiornithes) and the radiation of angiosperms.

Early specializations for mimicry and defense in a Jurassic stick insect

Mimicry and secondary defense are staples among predator–prey interactions. Among insects, the stick and leaf insects are masters of camouflage. Nonetheless, a meager understanding of their origin and early mimetic evolution persists. Here, we report the earliest mimetic and defensive strategies of a stick insect from the Middle Jurassic of China, Aclistophasma echinulatum gen. et sp. nov., exquisitely preserving abdominal extensions and femoral spines. The distribution of these characteristics mapped onto the phylogeny of Phasmatodea reveals that abdominal extensions and femoral spines developed multiple times during the evolution of stick insects, and indicates that the origin of abdominal extensions predates other modifications, while tergal extensions predate other expansions of the body, such as those of the sterna and pleura, as well as defensive femoral spines. The new fossil provides clues into early antipredator defensive strategies, allows inferences as to the potential environment and predators, and reveals the mimetic and defensive mechanisms of stick insects from 165 million years ago.

A new species of Astreptolabis in mid-Cretaceous amber from northern Myanmar, with the discovery of the first male of Astreptolabidinae (Dermaptera)

A new species of one of the basal families among extant Dermaptera, Pygidicranidae, is described from mid-Cretaceous amber of Myanmar based on two females and a male. Astreptolabislaevissp. nov., belongs to the extinct subfamily Astreptolabidinae, sharing the diagnostic combination of features typical of this group, such as the well-developed compound eyes, large pronotum, and straight and tubular cerci. The discovery of a male with its genitalia partly exerted permits characterization of traits for the subfamily and provides further information on the uniqueness and affinities of the subfamily. In addition, the extended hind wing allows for a comparison between the folding mechanism between these fossils and their modern counterparts, demonstrating considerable conservatism in hind wing evolution among Dermaptera.

Cretaceous winged stick insects clarify the early evolution of Phasmatodea

Wingless and shorter winged stick insects are very common today, but most known extinct stick insects had fully developed wings, leading to contentious affinities among the extinct winged and extant groups. We report herein three male winged stick insects, assigned to Pterophasmatidae fam. nov., from mid-Cretaceous Myanmar (Burmese) amber. Pterophasmatidae fam. nov. are regarded as transitional taxa from extinct winged to modern wingless and shorter winged stick insects based on their similar tegmina venation with extinct Susumanioidea and some body features the same as extant Phasmatodea. However, their symmetric phallic organs comprising two consistent phallomeres are different from those of all living groups. Phylogenetic analyses suggest that the extinct winged taxa, including the new family, are the stem groups of modern stick and leaf insects, and all of them constitute the clade of Phasmatodea. New findings indicate winged and wingless stick insects' morphologies diversified significantly during or before the mid-Cretaceous.

A new genus and species of berothids (Insecta, Neuroptera) from the Late Cretaceous Myanmar amber

A new genus and species of Berothidae is described from the Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian) Myanmar amber. Ansoberothajiewenae gen. et sp. nov. can be easily distinguished from other berothid genera by the long antenna, the scape with ca. 100 flagellomeres, the forewing with four ra-rp, MPand CuA are pectinately branched, and the hind wing with one oblique cua-cup between CuA stem and the distal branch of CuP.