A cretaceous fly trap? remarkable abdominal modification in a fossil wasp
Abstract Background Carnivorous insects have evolved a range of prey and host capture mechanisms. However, insect predation strategies in the fossil record remain poorly understood. Results Here, we describe †Sirenobethylus charybdis n. gen. & sp., based on sixteen adult female wasps in Kachin a...
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2025-03-01
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12915-025-02190-2 |
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| author | Qiong Wu Lars Vilhelmsen Xiaoqin Li De Zhuo Dong Ren Taiping Gao |
| author_facet | Qiong Wu Lars Vilhelmsen Xiaoqin Li De Zhuo Dong Ren Taiping Gao |
| author_sort | Qiong Wu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background Carnivorous insects have evolved a range of prey and host capture mechanisms. However, insect predation strategies in the fossil record remain poorly understood. Results Here, we describe †Sirenobethylus charybdis n. gen. & sp., based on sixteen adult female wasps in Kachin amber from the mid-Cretaceous, 99 Mya (million years ago), and place it in Chrysidoidea: †Sirenobethylidae n. fam. The fossils display unique morphological modifications on the tip of the abdomen consisting of three flaps from the modified abdominal sternum 6 and tergum and sternum 7; the lower flap formed from sternum 6 is preserved in different positions relative to the other flaps in different specimens, indicating that they form some sort of grasping apparatus. Nothing similar is known from any other insect; the rounded abdominal apparatus, combined with the setae along the edges, is reminiscent of a Venus flytrap. Phylogenetic analysis suggests that the new family is a separate lineage close to the base of Chrysidoidea. Conclusions †Sirenobethylus probably was a koinobiont parasitoid wasp; the abdominal grasping apparatus may have been used to temporarily immobilize the host during oviposition. The new fossils suggest that Chrysidoidea displayed a wider range of parasitoid strategies in the mid-Cretaceous than they do today. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-36d19a712e0145239cd485cf5752bd63 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 1741-7007 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Biology |
| spelling | doaj-art-36d19a712e0145239cd485cf5752bd632025-08-20T02:49:06ZengBMCBMC Biology1741-70072025-03-012311910.1186/s12915-025-02190-2A cretaceous fly trap? remarkable abdominal modification in a fossil waspQiong Wu0Lars Vilhelmsen1Xiaoqin Li2De Zhuo3Dong Ren4Taiping Gao5College of Life Sciences, Capital Normal UniversityNatural History Museum of Denmark, SCIENCE, University of CopenhagenCollege of Life Sciences, Capital Normal UniversityBeijing Xiachong Amber MuseumCollege of Life Sciences, Capital Normal UniversityCollege of Life Sciences, Capital Normal UniversityAbstract Background Carnivorous insects have evolved a range of prey and host capture mechanisms. However, insect predation strategies in the fossil record remain poorly understood. Results Here, we describe †Sirenobethylus charybdis n. gen. & sp., based on sixteen adult female wasps in Kachin amber from the mid-Cretaceous, 99 Mya (million years ago), and place it in Chrysidoidea: †Sirenobethylidae n. fam. The fossils display unique morphological modifications on the tip of the abdomen consisting of three flaps from the modified abdominal sternum 6 and tergum and sternum 7; the lower flap formed from sternum 6 is preserved in different positions relative to the other flaps in different specimens, indicating that they form some sort of grasping apparatus. Nothing similar is known from any other insect; the rounded abdominal apparatus, combined with the setae along the edges, is reminiscent of a Venus flytrap. Phylogenetic analysis suggests that the new family is a separate lineage close to the base of Chrysidoidea. Conclusions †Sirenobethylus probably was a koinobiont parasitoid wasp; the abdominal grasping apparatus may have been used to temporarily immobilize the host during oviposition. The new fossils suggest that Chrysidoidea displayed a wider range of parasitoid strategies in the mid-Cretaceous than they do today.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12915-025-02190-2SirenobethylidaeChrysidoideaMorphologyGrasping apparatusPhylogeny |
| spellingShingle | Qiong Wu Lars Vilhelmsen Xiaoqin Li De Zhuo Dong Ren Taiping Gao A cretaceous fly trap? remarkable abdominal modification in a fossil wasp BMC Biology Sirenobethylidae Chrysidoidea Morphology Grasping apparatus Phylogeny |
| title | A cretaceous fly trap? remarkable abdominal modification in a fossil wasp |
| title_full | A cretaceous fly trap? remarkable abdominal modification in a fossil wasp |
| title_fullStr | A cretaceous fly trap? remarkable abdominal modification in a fossil wasp |
| title_full_unstemmed | A cretaceous fly trap? remarkable abdominal modification in a fossil wasp |
| title_short | A cretaceous fly trap? remarkable abdominal modification in a fossil wasp |
| title_sort | cretaceous fly trap remarkable abdominal modification in a fossil wasp |
| topic | Sirenobethylidae Chrysidoidea Morphology Grasping apparatus Phylogeny |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1186/s12915-025-02190-2 |
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