Morphological and behavioral convergence in extinct and extant bugs: the systematics and biology of a new unusual fossil lace bug from the eocene.
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 26267108.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0133330 and PMC identifier 4534043.
- Licence recorded as CC0.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
The bug Gyaclavator kohlsi Wappler, Guilbert, Wedmann et Labandeira, gen. et sp. nov., represents a new extinct genus of lace bugs (Insecta: Heteroptera: Tingidae) occurring in latest early Eocene deposits of the Green River Formation, from the southern Piceance Basin of Northwestern Colorado, in North America. Gyaclavator can be placed within the Tingidae with certainty, perhaps it is sistergroup to Cantacaderinae. If it belongs to Cantacaderinae, it is the first fossil record of this group for North America. Gyaclavator has unique, conspicuous antennae bearing a specialized, highly dilated distiflagellomere, likely important for intra- or intersex reproductive competition and attraction. This character parallels similar antennae in leaf-footed bugs (Coreidae), and probably is associated with a behavioral convergence as well.
Medical subject headings
- Fossils
- Heteroptera
- Phylogeny