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Wang J, Engel MS, Zhang W, Shih C, Qiu R, Ren D. Swarming caddisflies in the mid-cretaceous. Natl Sci Rev 2024; 11:nwae227. [PMID: 39140006 PMCID: PMC11321250 DOI: 10.1093/nsr/nwae227] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2024] [Revised: 04/18/2024] [Accepted: 06/12/2024] [Indexed: 08/15/2024] Open
Abstract
Swarming, as a special form of mating aggregation, is most noteworthy in insects of the orders Ephemeroptera, Diptera, and Trichoptera. Swarming in extant trichopterans is well understood in terms of sex composition, specific mating behaviors, and functional morphological specializations of adults, but an exploration of the evolution of such aggregative behaviors is hampered by the dearth of available examples from the fossil record as well as the ability to reliably distinguish the few gatherings as the result of swarming relative to other taphonomic or behavioral factors. Herein we describe five new fossil species of caddisflies preserved in mid-Cretaceous amber from Myanmar, all preserved as large aggregations. Monospecific aggregations of these five new species can be positively identified as swarms based on morphological traits of wing shape, as well as the presence of particular forms of sexual dimorphism. Results of a phylogenetic reconstruction of both molecular and morphological data as well as ancestral-trait reconstructions and tip-dating analyses indicate that swarming was likely present in the Triassic as a feature of the trichopteran groundplan. Since most Mesozoic insectivorous predators were diurnal based on morphological evidence, largely nocturnal caddisflies would have been freed from such pressures. The phylogeny also shows a correlation between the rise of nocturnal bat predators from the Paleocene or early Eocene and the repeated loss of swarming from various clades of caddisflies, revealing the potential impact of bat predation on reshaping the behavioral landscape of Trichoptera during the Cenozoic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiajia Wang
- College of Life Sciences, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
- Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Michael S Engel
- Division of Invertebrate Zoology, American Museum of Natural History, New York 10024, USA
- Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, Lima 7345/7445, Perú
- Departamento de Entomología, Museo de Historia Natural, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, Lima 7345/7445, Perú
| | - Weiting Zhang
- Hebei International Joint Research Center for Paleoanthropology, Hebei GEO University, Shijiazhuang 050031, China
| | - Chungkun Shih
- College of Life Sciences, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
- Department of Paleobiology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20013, USA
| | - Rui Qiu
- National Natural History Museum of China, Beijing 100050, China
| | - Dong Ren
- College of Life Sciences, Capital Normal University, Beijing 100048, China
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2
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Monfroy QT, Kundrát M. The osteohistological variability in the evolution of basal avialans. ACTA ZOOL-STOCKHOLM 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/azo.12396] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Quentin T. Monfroy
- Department of Animal Physiology Institute of Biology and Ecology Faculty of Sciences Pavol Jozef Šafárik University Šrobárova 2Košice Slovakia
- PaleoBioImaging Lab, Evolutionary Biodiversity Research Group Center for Interdisciplinary Biosciences, Technology and Innovation Park Pavol Jozef Šafárik University Jesenná 5Košice Slovakia
| | - Martin Kundrát
- PaleoBioImaging Lab, Evolutionary Biodiversity Research Group Center for Interdisciplinary Biosciences, Technology and Innovation Park Pavol Jozef Šafárik University Jesenná 5Košice Slovakia
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3
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Clark AD, O’Connor JK. Exploring the Ecomorphology of Two Cretaceous Enantiornithines With Unique Pedal Morphology. Front Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.654156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Recently, ∼100 Ma amber from Myanmar has become an important source of information regarding the morphology of Late Cretaceous enantiornithines. Two specimens consisting of partial hindlimbs exhibit unusual morphologies when compared to both extant avian taxa and other Cretaceous enantiornithines. Pedal morphology is extremely ecologically informative in Aves as it represents the interface between body and substrate. These seemingly bizarre pedal morphologies represent adaptations that allowed these birds to utilize certain niches present in their paleoenvironment. Specific ecological niches apply the same general pressures to different species over time, and in doing so, through natural selection, produce morphologies that function much the same, although they may be anatomically dissimilar. As such, extant animals can provide useful information pertaining to the functional morphology of extinct animals, even in the absence of direct analogs, as in the case of these two Hukawng enantiornithines. Comparisons to extant taxa in the same predicted niches of these enantiornithines can be used to either support or contradict previous hypotheses regarding the in vivo function of these unique pedal morphologies. Elektorornis chenguangi exhibits a hypertrophied third pedal digit, originally interpreted as an appendage used for probing. We support this interpretation, which allows informed speculation as to the cranial anatomy of this taxon since extant animals that probe in woody substrates consistently pair elongate probing structures with a second robust structure that functions as a means to penetrate into this hard substrate. This suggests that the rostrum of Elektorornis would have been robust and most likely edentulous. The second specimen YLSNHM01001 exhibits an unusually mediolaterally robust fourth pedal digit, nearly double the width of digit II. Given that no such morphology is present in any other bird in the Mesozoic or Cenozoic we feel the unusual morphology justifies erection of a new taxon, Fortipesavis prehendens gen. et sp. nov. Although distinct, the morphology in F. prehendens resembles the syndactyl condition in some extant avian groups, and we hypothesize the robust digit similarly functioned to increase the surface area of the foot, facilitating grip on perches through increased friction. The necessity for increased grip and the lateral placement of this digit may suggest F. prehendens utilized mobile perches similar to extant kingfishers.
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Tihelka E, Cai C, Giacomelli M, Pisani D, Donoghue PCJ. Integrated phylogenomic and fossil evidence of stick and leaf insects (Phasmatodea) reveal a Permian-Triassic co-origination with insectivores. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2020; 7:201689. [PMID: 33391817 PMCID: PMC7735357 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.201689] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2020] [Accepted: 10/19/2020] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
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.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erik Tihelka
- School of Earth Sciences, Life Sciences Building, Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, UK
| | - Chenyang Cai
- School of Earth Sciences, Life Sciences Building, Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, UK
- State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, and Centre for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, People's Republic of China
| | - Mattia Giacomelli
- School of Earth Sciences, Life Sciences Building, Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, UK
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Life Sciences Building, Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, UK
| | - Davide Pisani
- School of Earth Sciences, Life Sciences Building, Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, UK
- School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Life Sciences Building, Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, UK
| | - Philip C. J. Donoghue
- School of Earth Sciences, Life Sciences Building, Tyndall Avenue, Bristol BS8 1TQ, UK
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5
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Hummingbird-sized dinosaur from the Cretaceous period of Myanmar. Nature 2020; 579:245-249. [PMID: 32161388 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-020-2068-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2019] [Accepted: 01/22/2020] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Skeletal inclusions in approximately 99-million-year-old amber from northern Myanmar provide unprecedented insights into the soft tissue and skeletal anatomy of minute fauna, which are not typically preserved in other depositional environments1-3. Among a diversity of vertebrates, seven specimens that preserve the skeletal remains of enantiornithine birds have previously been described1,4-8, all of which (including at least one seemingly mature specimen) are smaller than specimens recovered from lithic materials. Here we describe an exceptionally well-preserved and diminutive bird-like skull that documents a new species, which we name Oculudentavis khaungraae gen. et sp. nov. The find appears to represent the smallest known dinosaur of the Mesozoic era, rivalling the bee hummingbird (Mellisuga helenae)-the smallest living bird-in size. The O. khaungraae specimen preserves features that hint at miniaturization constraints, including a unique pattern of cranial fusion and an autapomorphic ocular morphology9 that resembles the eyes of lizards. The conically arranged scleral ossicles define a small pupil, indicative of diurnal activity. Miniaturization most commonly arises in isolated environments, and the diminutive size of Oculudentavis is therefore consistent with previous suggestions that this amber formed on an island within the Trans-Tethyan arc10. The size and morphology of this species suggest a previously unknown bauplan, and a previously undetected ecology. This discovery highlights the potential of amber deposits to reveal the lowest limits of vertebrate body size.
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7
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Carroll NR, Chiappe LM, Bottjer DJ. Mid-Cretaceous amber inclusions reveal morphogenesis of extinct rachis-dominated feathers. Sci Rep 2019; 9:18108. [PMID: 31792276 PMCID: PMC6889117 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-54429-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2018] [Accepted: 11/11/2019] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
We describe three-dimensionally preserved feathers in mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber that share macro-morphological similarities (e.g., proportionally wide rachis with a "medial stripe") with lithic, two-dimensionally preserved rachis-dominated feathers, first recognized in the Jehol Biota. These feathers in amber reveal a unique ventrally concave and dorsoventrally thin rachis, and a dorsal groove (sometimes pigmented) that we identify as the "medial stripe" visible in many rachis-dominated rectrices of Mesozoic birds. The distally pennaceous portion of these feathers shows differentiated proximal and distal barbules, the latter with hooklets forming interlocking barbs. Micro-CT scans and transverse sections demonstrate the absence of histodifferentiated cortex and medullary pith of the rachis and barb rami. The highly differentiated barbules combined with the lack of obvious histodifferentiation of the barb rami or rachis suggests that these feathers could have been formed without the full suite and developmental interplay of intermediate filament alpha keratins and corneous beta-proteins that is employed in the cornification process of modern feathers. This study thus highlights how the development of these feathers might have differed from that of their modern counterparts, namely in the morphogenesis of the ventral components of the rachis and barb rami. We suggest that the concave ventral surface of the rachis of these Cretaceous feathers is not homologous with the ventral groove of modern rachises. Our study of these Burmese feathers also confirms previous claims, based on two-dimensional fossils, that they correspond to an extinct morphotype and it cautions about the common practice of extrapolating developmental aspects (and mechanical attributes) of modern feathers to those of stem birds (and their dinosaurian outgroups) because the latter need not to have developed through identical pathways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathan R Carroll
- The Dinosaur Institute, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA, 90007, USA.
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, 90089-0740, USA.
| | - Luis M Chiappe
- The Dinosaur Institute, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA, 90007, USA
| | - David J Bottjer
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, 90089-0740, USA
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8
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Xing L, McKellar RC, O'Connor JK, Niu K, Mai H. A mid-Cretaceous enantiornithine foot and tail feather preserved in Burmese amber. Sci Rep 2019; 9:15513. [PMID: 31664115 PMCID: PMC6820775 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-51929-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2019] [Accepted: 10/10/2019] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Since the first skeletal remains of avians preserved in amber were described in 2016, new avian remains trapped in Cretaceous-age Burmese amber continue to be uncovered, revealing a diversity of skeletal and feather morphologies observed nowhere else in the Mesozoic fossil record. Here we describe a foot with digital proportions unlike any previously described enantiornithine or Mesozoic bird. No bones are preserved in the new specimen but the outline of the foot is recorded in a detailed skin surface, which is surrounded by feather inclusions including a partial rachis-dominated feather. Pedal proportions and plumage support identification as an enantiornithine, but unlike previous discoveries the toes are stout with transversely elongated digital pads, and the outer toe appears strongly thickened relative to the inner two digits. The new specimen increases the known diversity and morphological disparity among the Enantiornithes, hinting at a wider range of habitats and behaviours. It also suggests that the Burmese amber avifauna was distinct from other Mesozoic assemblages, with amber entrapment including representatives from unusual small forms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lida Xing
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Beijing, 100083, China.
- School of the Earth Sciences and Resources, China University of Geosciences, Beijing, 100083, China.
- Yingliang Stone Nature History Museum, Nan'an, 362300, China.
| | - Ryan C McKellar
- Royal Saskatchewan Museum, Regina, Saskatchewan, S4P 4W7, Canada.
- Biology Department, University of Regina, Regina, Saskatchewan, S4S 0A2, Canada.
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Kansas, 1501 Crestline Drive - Suite 140, Lawrence, Kansas, 66045, USA.
| | - Jingmai K O'Connor
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Beijing, 100044, China
| | - Kecheng Niu
- Yingliang Stone Nature History Museum, Nan'an, 362300, China
| | - Huijuan Mai
- Yunnan Key Laboratory for Palaeobiology, Yunnan University, Kunming, Yunnan, 650091, China
- MEC International Laboratory for Palaeobiology and Palaeoenvironment, Yunnan University, Kunming, Yunnan, 650091, China
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9
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Jiang T, Szwedo J, Wang B. A unique camouflaged mimarachnid planthopper from mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber. Sci Rep 2019; 9:13112. [PMID: 31511621 PMCID: PMC6739471 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-49414-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2019] [Accepted: 08/13/2019] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Predation is a major driving force for the evolution of functional forms. Avoidance of visual predators has resulted in different kinds of anti-predator defences, such as: camouflage, crypsis, disruptive coloration, and masquerade or mimesis. Camouflage is one of the forms involving shape, colouration, structure and behaviour when the visual pattern and orientation of an animal can determine whether it lives or dies. Inferring the behaviour and function of an ancient organism from its fossilised remains is a difficult task, but in many cases it closely resembles that of its descendants on uniformitarian grounds. Here we report and discuss examples of morphological and behavioural traits involving camouflage named recently as a flatoidinisation syndrome, shown by the inclusion of a planthopper in mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber. We found a new genus and species of an extinct Cretaceous planthopper family Mimarachnidae showing peculiar complex morphological adaptations to camouflage it on tree bark. Due to convergence, it resembles an unrelated tropiduchid planthopper from Eocene Baltic amber and also a modern representatives of the planthopper family Flatidae. Flattening of the body, the horizontal position of the tegmina at repose, tegmina with an undulating margin and elevated, wavy longitudinal veins, together with colouration and more sedentary behavioral traits enable these different insects to avoid predators. Our discovery reveals flatoidinisation syndrome in mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber which may provide insights into the processes of natural selection and evolution in this ancient forest.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tian Jiang
- China University of Geosciences (Beijing), No. 29 Xueyuan Road, Haidian district, Beijing, 100083, China
- State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology and Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 39 East Beijing Road, Nanjing, 210008, China
| | - Jacek Szwedo
- State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology and Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 39 East Beijing Road, Nanjing, 210008, China.
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Entomology and Museum of Amber Inclusions, Department of Invertebrate Zoology and Parasitology, Faculty of Biology, University of Gdańsk, 59, Wita Stwosza St., PL80-308, Gdańsk, Poland.
| | - Bo Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology and Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 39 East Beijing Road, Nanjing, 210008, China
- Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
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10
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Xing L, O'Connor JK, Chiappe LM, McKellar RC, Carroll N, Hu H, Bai M, Lei F. A New Enantiornithine Bird with Unusual Pedal Proportions Found in Amber. Curr Biol 2019; 29:2396-2401.e2. [PMID: 31303484 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2019.05.077] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2019] [Revised: 03/11/2019] [Accepted: 05/31/2019] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Recent discoveries of vertebrate remains trapped in middle Cretaceous amber from northern Myanmar [1, 2] have provided insights into the morphology of soft-tissue structures in extinct animals [3-7], in particular, into the evolution and paleobiology of early birds [4, 8, 9]. So far, five bird specimens have been described from Burmese amber: two isolated wings, an isolated foot with wing fragment, and two partial skeletons [4, 8-10]. Most of these specimens contain the remains of juvenile enantiornithine birds [4]. Here, we describe a new specimen of enantiornithine bird in amber, collected at the Angbamo locality in the Hukawng Valley. The new specimen includes a partial right hindlimb and remiges from an adult or subadult bird. Its foot, of which the third digit is much longer than the second and fourth digits, is distinct from those of all other currently recognized Mesozoic and extant birds. Based on the autapomorphic foot morphology, we erect a new taxon, Elektorornis chenguangi gen. et sp. nov. We suggest that the elongated third digit was employed in a unique foraging strategy, highlighting the bizarre morphospace in which early birds operated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lida Xing
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, China; School of the Earth Sciences and Resources, China University of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, China.
| | - Jingmai K O'Connor
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Beijing 100044, China; CAS Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Beijing 10010, China.
| | - Luis M Chiappe
- Dinosaur Institute, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA 90007, USA
| | - Ryan C McKellar
- Royal Saskatchewan Museum, Regina, Saskatchewan S4P 4W7, Canada; Biology Department, University of Regina, Regina, Saskatchewan S4S 0A2, Canada; Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA
| | - Nathan Carroll
- Dinosaur Institute, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA 90007, USA
| | - Han Hu
- Zoology Division, School of Environmental and Rural Sciences, University of New England, Armidale, NSW 2351, Australia
| | - Ming Bai
- Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
| | - Fumin Lei
- Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
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11
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Kaye TG, Pittman M, Marugán-Lobón J, Martín-Abad H, Sanz JL, Buscalioni AD. Fully fledged enantiornithine hatchling revealed by Laser-Stimulated Fluorescence supports precocial nesting behavior. Sci Rep 2019; 9:5006. [PMID: 30899080 PMCID: PMC6428842 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-41423-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2018] [Accepted: 03/08/2019] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Laser-Stimulated Fluorescence (LSF) is used to identify fully fledged feathering in the hatchling enantiornithine bird specimen MPCM-LH-26189, supporting precocial nesting behavior in this extinct group. The LSF results include the detection of a long pennaceous wing feather as well as cover feathers around the body. The LSF technique showed improved detection limits over and above synchrotron and UV imaging which had both been performed on this specimen. The findings underscore the value of using a wide range of analytical techniques.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas G Kaye
- Foundation for Scientific Advancement, Sierra Vista, Arizona, 85650, United States of America.
| | - Michael Pittman
- Vertebrate Palaeontology Laboratory, Department of Earth Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Jesús Marugán-Lobón
- Facultad de Ciencias, Departamento de Biología, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, 28049, Madrid, Spain
| | - Hugo Martín-Abad
- Facultad de Ciencias, Departamento de Biología, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, 28049, Madrid, Spain
| | - José Luis Sanz
- Facultad de Ciencias, Departamento de Biología, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, 28049, Madrid, Spain
| | - Angela D Buscalioni
- Facultad de Ciencias, Departamento de Biología, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, 28049, Madrid, Spain
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12
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Xing L, McKellar RC, O'Connor JK, Bai M, Tseng K, Chiappe LM. A fully feathered enantiornithine foot and wing fragment preserved in mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber. Sci Rep 2019; 9:927. [PMID: 30700773 PMCID: PMC6353931 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-37427-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2018] [Accepted: 11/30/2018] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Over the last three years, Burmese amber (~99 Ma, from Myanmar) has provided a series of immature enantiornithine skeletal remains preserved in varying developmental stages and degrees of completeness. These specimens have improved our knowledge based on compression fossils in Cretaceous sedimentary rocks, adding details of three-dimensional structure and soft tissues that are rarely preserved elsewhere. Here we describe a remarkably well-preserved foot, accompanied by part of the wing plumage. These body parts were likely dismembered, entering the resin due to predatory or scavenging behaviour by a larger animal. The new specimen preserves contour feathers on the pedal phalanges together with enigmatic scutellae scale filament (SSF) feathers on the foot, providing direct analogies to the plumage patterns observed in modern birds, and those cultivated through developmental manipulation studies. Ultimately, this connection may allow researchers to observe how filamentous dinosaur 'protofeathers' developed-testing theories using evolutionary holdovers in modern birds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lida Xing
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Beijing, 100083, China
- School of the Earth Sciences and Resources, China University of Geosciences, Beijing, 100083, China
| | - Ryan C McKellar
- Royal Saskatchewan Museum, Regina, Saskatchewan, S4P 4W7, Canada.
- Biology Department, University of Regina, Regina, Saskatchewan, S4S 0A2, Canada.
- Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, 1501 Crestline Drive - Suite 140, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, 66045, USA.
| | - Jingmai K O'Connor
- Key Laboratory of Vertebrate Evolution and Human Origins of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology, Beijing, 100044, China.
| | - Ming Bai
- Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
| | - Kuowei Tseng
- Department of Exercise and Health Science, University of Taipei, Taipei, 11153, China
| | - Luis M Chiappe
- Dinosaur Institute, Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA, 90007, USA
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