Description | Zigrasimecia is an extinct genus of ants which existed in the Cretaceous period approximately 98 million years ago. The first specimens were collected from Burmese amber in Kachin State, 100 kilometres (62 mi) west of Myitkyina town in Myanmar. In 2013, palaeoentomologists Phillip Barden and David Grimaldi published a paper describing and naming Zigrasimecia tonsora. They described a dealate female with unusual features, notably the highly specialized mandibles. Other features include large ocelli, short scapes, 12 antennomeres, small eyes, and a clypeal margin that has a row of peg-like denticles. The genus Zigrasimecia was originally incertae sedis (uncertain placement) within Formicidae until a second species, Zigrasimecia ferox, was described in 2014, confirming its placement in the subfamily Sphecomyrminae.
|
---|
Source Data | |
---|
Rank | species |
---|
Taxonomy (GBIF) | Life : Animalia : Arthropoda : Insecta : Hymenoptera : Formicidae : Zigrasimecia : Zigrasimecia tonsora |
---|
Taxonomy (PBDB) | Life : Animalia : Arthropoda : Insecta : Hymenoptera : Formicidae : Zigrasimecia : Zigrasimecia tonsora |
---|
Taxonomic Status (GBIF) | accepted |
---|
Classification (PBDB,GBIF) | |
---|
Generic Name | Zigrasimecia |
---|
Scientific Name | Zigrasimecia tonsora Barden & Grimaldi, 2013 |
---|
Opinions (PBDB) | Name | Rank | Opinion | Evidence | Author |
---|
Zigrasimecia tonsora | species | belongs to Zigrasimecia | stated with evidence | Barden and Grimaldi, 2013 |
|
---|
Status (PBDB) | extinct |
---|
Taxon Size (PBDB) | 1 |
---|
First Recorded Appearance | 99.6 - 93.5 Ma Late/Upper Cretaceous |
---|
Last Recorded Appearance | 99.6 - 93.5 Ma Late/Upper Cretaceous |
---|
Environment | terrestrial (based on Insecta) |
---|
Motility | actively mobile (based on Arthropoda) |
---|
Taphonomy | chitin (based on Insecta) |
---|
Primary Reference (PBDB) | P. Barden and D. Grimaldi. 2013. A new genus of highly specialized ants in Cretaceous Burmese amber (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Zootaxa 3681:405-412 |
---|
Wikipedia | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zigrasimecia_tonsora |
---|