'I was not expecting to see that kind of structure preserved in a rock compression. I’ve never seen that before.”
and boasts fine-grained shales that preserve a good retail of the flora and fauna that once lived there. This new katydid species is extinct and is named“Obviously, having a fossil species of a modern genus is really significant because it confirms the antiquity of this lineage,” Heads said. “Now we know that about 50 million years ago, this genus had already evolved and already had a morphology that mimics the grass in which it lives and hides from predators.
Three views of the fossil insect include impressions of its wings, top; internal structures, middle; and parts of the rear legs, bottom. CREDIT: Jared Thomas.evolved and when their unique physical structure developed over time.—was preserved, which is not super unusual, according to Heads. However, when he examined the specimen underneath a microscope, he saw evidence of some surprising internal structures that had been preserved for millennia.
that are associated with wings were in the specimen, in addition to some tissue called a “fat body,” an organ that helps the insect’s metabolism.Yet another surprise awaited Heads. “There are these little tubules that all seem to connect to a round structure – and that can only be a testis and accessory glands that are associated with the testis,” Heads said. “That’s just phenomenal. I was not expecting to see that kind of structure preserved in a rock compression. I’ve never seen that before.
Just to make sure, Heads dissected several katydid specimens in this same genus to match what he was seeing in this 50 million year-old fossil. The accessory glands and ventriculus were the same in the modern day katydids and looked exactly the same. It is potentially the first example of this level of preservation.
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