Rare Insect Discovery Reveals a New Species From the Dinosaur Age
- Researchers from the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History in Israel identified Cretodorus noonoo, a new insect species that lived approximately 99 million years ago during the age of dinosaurs.
- Belonging to the ancient Neazoniidae family, Noo-Noo was named after the Teletubbies vacuum cleaner because its flexible mouthparts resemble the character's hose; 13 specimens were found in Kachin amber from Myanmar.
- Noo-Noo possessed mouthparts reaching twice its body length, densely covered with folds that provided flexibility and prevented collapse, enabling the insect to reach food deep within tree bark.
- Dr. Leonidas-Romanos Davranoglou noted that similar structures in diverse Cretaceous insect groups suggest ancient forests offered ecological opportunities unlike those known today.
- The study, published in the journal Insects, suggests forests rich in thick-barked trees likely provided an evolutionary advantage for insects capable of reaching deeper tissues.
11 Articles
11 Articles
Dinosaur-Era Insect Had Its Own Bendy Straw
An insect that scuttled around forests with the dinosaurs 99 million years ago has only now joined the scientific record—with a nod to the Teletubbies. According to a release, researchers in Israel and China have identified the previously unknown species, preserved in Burmese amber that was once tree resin,...
Scientists examined 13 insects trapped in 99-million-year-old amber and identified a new species whose flexible mouthpart reached nearly twice its body length, possibly letting it probe deep into tree bark for sap
A remarkable new insect species, Cretodorus noonoo, has been unearthed from 99 million-year-old amber found in Myanmar. This intriguing species is linked to the Neazoniidae family, renowned for its extraordinary mouthparts. These long and flexible adaptations reveal specialized feeding behaviors on tree sap. This discovery sheds light on the ecological interactions within Cretaceous forests, illustrating the diverse evolutionary strategies that …
Rare insect discovery reveals a new species from the dinosaur age
Some 99 million years ago, during the age of the dinosaurs, a tiny insect belonging to a species previously unknown to science became trapped in tree resin. The resin hardened and turned into amber, and the fossil preserved within it has now enabled a team of researchers from the School of Zoology and The Steinhardt Museum of Natural History to identify and describe a new species: Cretodorus noonoo, or "Noo-Noo."
The new insect has an attribute that caught the attention of scientists: very long and flexible mouthpieces, which possibly sucked sap
This dinosaur age insect had a feeding tube longer than its body
An insect trapped in amber about 99 million years ago has been identified as a species previously unknown to science. Its most striking feature is a long, flexible feeding structure that reached nearly twice the length of its body. The discovery offers a glimpse of how insects found food in forests during the age of […]
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