Ancient Ephemeroptera-Collembola symbiosis fossilized in amber predicts contemporary phoretic associations.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 23082186.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0047651 and PMC identifier PMC1559867.
- No licence information is recorded for this record.
- Because redistribution is not established, this page shows the abstract only. Follow the links below for the full text.
Abstract
X-ray computed tomography is used to identify a unique example of fossilized phoresy in 16 million-year-old Miocene Dominican amber involving a springtail being transported by a mayfly. It represents the first evidence (fossil or extant) of phoresy in adult Ephemeroptera and only the second record in Collembola (the first is also preserved in amber). This is the first record of Collembola using winged insects for dispersal. This fossil predicts the occurrence of similar behaviour in living springtails and helps explain the global distribution of Collembola today.