Stunning fossil trapped in amber reveals previously unknown species that lived during the time of dinosaurs

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When dinosaurs roamed the Earth, their surroundings looked completely different than the world today. But there were also some similarities. And now scientists have confirmed a new fact: different species of fireflies illuminated the night late Mesozoic.

The discovery comes from fossils of an ancient firefly species first discovered in 2016 that was trapped in a 99-million-year-old Burmese amber from northern Burma. The beetle is only the second Mesozoic firefly species identified.

Scientists have estimated that fireflies evolved aerial bioluminescence, the ability to glow while in flight, at least 100 million years ago in July 2022 study that analyzed the first Mesozoic firefly fossil described in 2015. However, because firefly remains from this period can be difficult to find because the insects’ softer bodies do not preserve well in the fossil record, the evolution of the beetles and their bioluminescence, experts say, are difficult to find. define.

The recently identified species, called Flammarionella hehaikuni, may help researchers better understand the early evolution of fireflies and this distinctive feature, according to a study published in the Sept. 11 journal. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.

“The fossil helps fill gaps in our understanding of the evolutionary history of lamproid beetles (so-called beetle family fireflies) and shows that key features such as the abdominal light organs have remained unchanged since the mid-Cretaceous,” study lead author Chenyang Cai, a professor at the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Paleontology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, said in an email.

“How cool is it that dinosaurs once saw fireflies flying around at dusk?”

Fireflies in the land of dinosaurs

After first looking at the firefly fossil in 2016, Cai said he thought the beetle was a genus of clicking beetle in the family Elateridae — similar to a separate species that Cai also helped identify from the Burmese amber in 2021 — because of the fossil insect’s unique serrated antennae, which modern fireflies do not have. But when he revisited the peculiar fossil described in the new study in late 2022, Cai noticed a well-preserved light organ characteristic of fireflies.

There they are 10 previous species of fireflies known only from fossils, said Dr. Oliver Keller, a museum collections specialist at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor who has studied the systematics and taxonomy of fireflies.

“The significance of this discovery lies in the rarity of firefly fossils from this period,” Keller said by email. Since only one other species of Cretaceous firefly has been identified, “this new species could be used for a resurvey (July 2022 study) to better date the evolution of fireflies, taking into account new evidence,” he added. Keller was not included in the new study or the 2022 study.

Fireflies shine through lots of reasonsmost often as a defense mechanism and a way of communicating and attracting partners. While it’s hard to speculate what these bursts looked like 100 million years ago, it’s possible they looked similar to those seen today, Keller said.

The study’s authors named the beetle in tribute to French astronomer Camille Flammarion and Haikun He, amateur collector The study shows that he offered several other amber specimens to the authors.

Variety of fireflies

According to the Natural History Museum in London, there are now over 2,000 species of fireflies. The study authors hypothesize that the newly recorded ancient firefly species belonged to the subfamily Luciolinae, which now includes about 450 species, due to the location of the light organ on the insect’s abdomen, said study co-author Dr. Robin Kundrata, an entomologist and associate professor in the department zoology at the Palacký University in Olomouc, Czech Republic.

However, none of the existing Luciolinae species have such characteristic antennae as the fossil, and according to the study authors, they may also differ depending on the sex of the insect. The newly identified fossil belongs to a female.

Moreover, the firefly fossil, which is less than 1 centimeter (0.4 in) long, is morphologically different from other specimens identified in 2015, showing that the light organs of Mesozoic species were more diverse than once thought, but still similar to organs found in Mesozoic species. modern skylights, Kundrata wrote in an email.

The authors said they hope that more Mesozoic firefly fossils will come to light, allowing scientists to better understand the mysterious origins of the bioluminescent beetles.

“Based on recent knowledge, fireflies originated in the Mesozoic era, although the precise period of their origin remains unclear. (…) Future discoveries may reveal further information about their diversity and morphology,” Kundrata said. “Since there is no information about the immature stages of fireflies from their early evolution, we would be happy to discover fossilized specimens of Mesozoic larvae.”

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