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Issue: Vol. 5661 No. 1: 14 Jul. 2025
Type: Article
Published: 2025-07-14
DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5661.1.5
Page range: 108-116
Abstract views: 59
PDF downloaded: 1

Three new species of Microphorites (Diptera: Dolichopodidae sensu lato: Microphorinae) from mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber

Guangdong Key Laboratory of Animal Conservation and Resource Utilization; Guangdong Public Laboratory of Wild Animal Conservation and Utilization; Institute of Zoology; Guangdong Academy of Sciences; Guangzhou 510260; China; College of Life Sciences and Academy for Multidisciplinary Studies; Capital Normal University; 105 Xisanhuanbeilu; Haidian District; Beijing 100048; China
Henan Natural History Museum; Jinshuidonglu 18; Zheng-dongxin Dsitrict; Zhengzhou 450016; China
College of Life Sciences and Academy for Multidisciplinary Studies; Capital Normal University; 105 Xisanhuanbeilu; Haidian District; Beijing 100048; China
Guangdong Key Laboratory of Animal Conservation and Resource Utilization; Guangdong Public Laboratory of Wild Animal Conservation and Utilization; Institute of Zoology; Guangdong Academy of Sciences; Guangzhou 510260; China
Diptera fossil long-leg fly leg modification Myanmar

Abstract

Three new species of Microphorites Hennig (Diptera: Dolichopodidae: Microphorinae) are described from mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber: M. complanipedis Zhang et Wang sp. nov., M. curtipedis Zhang et Wang sp. nov. and M. hamataculeus Zhang et Wang sp. nov., exhibiting remarkable leg modifications. It is the first time that leg specializations within Microphorites are recorded, and the discovery of these new species provides critical evidence for reconstructing biological adaptations and behavioral complexity in this extinct lineage. The exceptional preservation of these amber inclusions offers new insight to investigate functional morphology and ecological strategies in Cretaceous empidoid flies. An identification key to all known species of Microphorites is also presented.

 

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How to Cite

Zhang, H., Han, Y., Ren, D. & Wang, Y. (2025) Three new species of Microphorites (Diptera: Dolichopodidae sensu lato: Microphorinae) from mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber. Zootaxa, 5661 (1), 108–116. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5661.1.5