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| Life reconstruction of cicadas in a Mesozoic Forest. Eunotalia emeryi gen. et sp. nov. Cretotettigarcta shcherbakovi sp. nov. Pranwanna xiai gen. et sp. nov. Jiang, Szwedo, Labandeira, Chen, Moulds, Mähler, Muscente, Zhuo, Nyunt, Zhang, Wei, Rust & Wang, 2024 Reconstructed by Mr. Dinghua Yang |
Abstract
Extant cicada (Hemiptera: Cicadoidea) includes widely distributed Cicadidae and relictual Tettigarctidae, with fossils ascribed to these two groups based on several distinct, minimally varying morphological differences that define their extant counterparts. However, directly assigning Mesozoic fossils to modern taxa may overlook the role of unique and transitional features provided by fossils in tracking their early evolutionary paths. Here, based on adult and nymphal fossils from mid-Cretaceous Kachin amber of Myanmar, we explore the phylogenetic relationships and morphological disparities of fossil and extant cicadoids. Our results suggest that Cicadidae and Tettigarctidae might have diverged at or by the Middle Jurassic, with morphological evolution possibly shaped by host plant changes. The discovery of tymbal structures and anatomical analysis of adult fossils indicate that mid-Cretaceous cicadas were silent as modern Tettigarctidae or could have produced faint tymbal-related sounds. The discovery of final-instar nymphal and exuviae cicadoid fossils with fossorial forelegs and piercing-sucking mouthparts indicates that they had most likely adopted a subterranean lifestyle by the mid-Cretaceous, occupying the ecological niche of underground feeding on root. Our study traces the morphological, behavioral, and ecological evolution of Cicadoidea from the Mesozoic, emphasizing their adaptive traits and interactions with their living environments.
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| Adults, final instar nymph, and exuviae of Cicadoidea fossils in Kachin amber of northern Myanmar. a Eunotalia emeryi gen. et sp. nov. (MGM2016–014). This image was published in the study by ref. 41 (Fig. 3a). b Cretotettigarcta problematica comb. nov. (new material: NIGP201895). c Cretotettigarcta shcherbakovi sp. nov. (NIGP201896). d Vetuprosbole parallelica (new material: NIGP201897). e–i Pranwanna xiai gen. et sp. nov. (LYU–BC2001, male; LYU–BC2002, female). e Dorsal view of male. f Dorsal view of female. g Ventral view of male. h Ventral view of female. i Left view of final-instar nymph, Cicadoidea species 1 (NIGP2018985). j–m Final- nymphal exuviae. j Nymphal sp. 2 (MGM2016–017), left view. k Nymphal sp. 3 (LYU–BC2004), right view. l Nymphal sp. 4 (NIGP201900), ventral view. m Nymphal sp. 5 (NIGP201901), left view. |
Stem cicadoids
Eunotalia gen. nov.
Eunotalia emeryi sp. nov.
Etymology: The generic name is a compound form, from Classical Greek prefix: eu-, meaning ‘true’ or ‘good’, and notos, meaning ‘back’ or ‘dorsum’.
Stem cicadids
Cretotettigarcta
Cretotettigarcta problematica comb. nov.
Cretotettigarcta shcherbakovi sp. nov.
Pranwanna gen. nov
Pranwanna xiai sp. nov.
Etymology: The generic name, pranwanna, is from the Jingpho language spoken in Kachin State of Myanmar, meaning ‘primitive’.
Hui Jiang, Jacek Szwedo, Conrad C. Labandeira, Jun Chen, Maxwell S. Moulds, Bastian Mähler, A. Drew Muscente, De Zhuo, Thet Tin Nyunt, Haichun Zhang, Cong Wei, Jes Rust and Bo Wang. 2024. Mesozoic Evolution of Cicadas and their Origins of Vocalization and Root Feeding. Nature Communications. 15, 376. DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-44446-x
