Cretaceous amber fossils shed light on bioluminescence in beetles

Bioluminescence has fascinated people from time to time. Most beetles are beetles that are able to make their own light, especially fireflies, worm beetles, and their relatives.

While the chemistry that magically gives some insects the magical ability to shine now has a reasonable value, much less is known about how these symptoms evolved.

New research by a team of scientists led by the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (NIGPAS) has provided new insights into the evolution of this potential. Their research focuses on the newly discovered family Cretophengodidae, found in Cretaceous amber fossils, which reflect light on bioluminescence in beetles. Their study was published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B. on 20 January.

“The recently discovered fossil, preserved by lifelong loyalty in amber, represents a broken friendship of the smallest fireworks and families. Ragophthalmidae and Phengodidae, “said palaeontologist and lead author of LI Yanda, a scientist at NIGPAS and Peking University.

The amber from the north of Myanmar is about 99 million years old, thus going back to the golden age of dinosaurs. “The new fossil is well preserved; even the light organ on her abdomen is intact,” said Dr CAI Chenyang, associate professor at NIGPAS and a researcher at Bristol University.

“The fossil shows that some beetles were already emitting light 99 million years ago, in the Cretaceous. We believe that light production first arose in soft larvae and The beetle is vulnerable as a means of protection to keep predators away. Palacký in the Czech Republic.

With around 386,000 species defined and perhaps more than a million more still waiting to be discovered, beetles are the most diverse group of animals. Most light-producing beetles fall into the very surface Elateroidea, with approximately 24,000 species. It is one of the most heterogeneous groups of beetles and has always caused difficulties for entomologists, especially since important anatomical mechanisms have been independently acquired many times in unrelated families.

“The discovery of a new extinct elateroid beetle family is important because it helps shed light on the evolution of this fascinating but interesting group,” said Erik Tihelka of the School of Earth Sciences and a partner in this research.

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