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Preservation and Taphonomy of Fossil Insects from the Earliest Eocene of Denmark

Heingård, Miriam LU orcid ; Sjövall, Peter ; Schultz, Bo P. ; Sylvestersen, René L. and Lindgren, Johan LU (2022) In Biology 11(3).
Abstract
Marine sediments of the lowermost Eocene Stolleklint Clay and Fur Formation of north-western Denmark have yielded abundant well-preserved insects. However, despite a long history of research, in-depth information pertaining to preservational modes and taphonomic pathways of these exceptional animal fossils remains scarce. In this paper, we use a combination of scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) to assess the ultrastructural and molecular composition of three insect fossils: a wasp (Hymenoptera), a damselfly (Odonata) and a pair of beetle elytra (Coleoptera). Our analyses show that all... (More)
Marine sediments of the lowermost Eocene Stolleklint Clay and Fur Formation of north-western Denmark have yielded abundant well-preserved insects. However, despite a long history of research, in-depth information pertaining to preservational modes and taphonomic pathways of these exceptional animal fossils remains scarce. In this paper, we use a combination of scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) to assess the ultrastructural and molecular composition of three insect fossils: a wasp (Hymenoptera), a damselfly (Odonata) and a pair of beetle elytra (Coleoptera). Our analyses show that all specimens are preserved as organic remnants that originate from the exoskeleton, with the elytra displaying a greater level of morphological fidelity than the other fossils. TEM analysis of the elytra revealed minute features, including a multilayered epicuticle comparable to those nanostructures that generate metallic colors in modern insects. Additionally, ToF-SIMS analyses provided spectral evidence for chemical residues of the pigment eumelanin as part of the cuticular remains. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first occasion where both structural colors and chemical traces of an endogenous pigment have been documented in a single fossil specimen. Overall, our results provide novel insights into the nature of insect body fossils and additionally shed light on exceptionally preserved terrestrial insect faunas found in marine paleoenvironments. (Less)
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author
; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
cuticle, Eocene, Fur Formation, insects, melanin, mo-clay, pigment, Stolleklint Clay, structural coloration, Ølst Formation
in
Biology
volume
11
issue
3
article number
395
pages
16 pages
publisher
MDPI AG
external identifiers
  • scopus:85126620965
  • pmid:35336769
ISSN
2079-7737
DOI
10.3390/biology11030395
project
Exceptional fossil preservation: implications for palaeobiology and taphonomy
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
2f4cff28-c0a9-4847-b527-b4a3421faa0b
date added to LUP
2022-03-08 17:49:46
date last changed
2022-06-08 03:00:18
@article{2f4cff28-c0a9-4847-b527-b4a3421faa0b,
  abstract     = {{Marine sediments of the lowermost Eocene Stolleklint Clay and Fur Formation of north-western Denmark have yielded abundant well-preserved insects. However, despite a long history of research, in-depth information pertaining to preservational modes and taphonomic pathways of these exceptional animal fossils remains scarce. In this paper, we use a combination of scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDX), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) to assess the ultrastructural and molecular composition of three insect fossils: a wasp (Hymenoptera), a damselfly (Odonata) and a pair of beetle elytra (Coleoptera). Our analyses show that all specimens are preserved as organic remnants that originate from the exoskeleton, with the elytra displaying a greater level of morphological fidelity than the other fossils. TEM analysis of the elytra revealed minute features, including a multilayered epicuticle comparable to those nanostructures that generate metallic colors in modern insects. Additionally, ToF-SIMS analyses provided spectral evidence for chemical residues of the pigment eumelanin as part of the cuticular remains. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first occasion where both structural colors and chemical traces of an endogenous pigment have been documented in a single fossil specimen. Overall, our results provide novel insights into the nature of insect body fossils and additionally shed light on exceptionally preserved terrestrial insect faunas found in marine paleoenvironments.}},
  author       = {{Heingård, Miriam and Sjövall, Peter and Schultz, Bo P. and Sylvestersen, René L. and Lindgren, Johan}},
  issn         = {{2079-7737}},
  keywords     = {{cuticle; Eocene; Fur Formation; insects; melanin; mo-clay; pigment; Stolleklint Clay; structural coloration; Ølst Formation}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{03}},
  number       = {{3}},
  publisher    = {{MDPI AG}},
  series       = {{Biology}},
  title        = {{Preservation and Taphonomy of Fossil Insects from the Earliest Eocene of Denmark}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/biology11030395}},
  doi          = {{10.3390/biology11030395}},
  volume       = {{11}},
  year         = {{2022}},
}