“Unlocking Ancient Secrets: Fossilized Beetle Reveals Surprising Role in Earth’s First Pollination 99 Million Years Ago!”
Details of the team’s findings are described in a study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Finding traces of pollen on a 99-million-year-old insect might not sound like such a big deal. But the discovery is a huge revelation for scientists, pushing back the estimated date of early insect pollination on Earth by at least 50 million years earlier than what was previously thought.
Not to mention the fact that a fossilized specimen inside amber with pollen still stuck on its body is an unusual find.
“It’s exceedingly rare to find a specimen where both the insect and the pollen are preserved in a single fossil,” said David Dilcher, the study’s co-author.
“Aside from the significance as earliest known direct evidence of insect pollination of flowering plants, this specimen perfectly illustrates the cooperative evolution of plants and animals during this time period, during which a true exposition of flowering plants occurred.”
David Dilcher et alAn illustration of what Angimordella burmitina might have looked like 99 million years ago.
First dug up in northern Myanmar by scientists in 2012, the beetle specimen is a newly discovered species called Angimordella burmitina and is related to a modern species of flower-loving beetles.
The species has a peculiar shape unlike the beetles we see today. In addition to being tiny — the specimen measures about four millimeters long — the A. burmitina has a curved-shaped body and head, which likely enabled it to reach deep into the flowers and feed on the sweet nectar.
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