New Burmese amber fossils reveal ancient forms of scale and wing pattern of the family Mogoplistidae Costa, 1855 (Orthoptera, Grylloidea)

The Mogoplistidae is a cricket family comprising more than 400 species worldwide. However, their fossils are rarely reported. The early evolution of this family remains poorly understood. In this study, two new genera and four new species of Mogoplistidae (†Cretoornebius huzhengkuni gen. et sp. nov., †Angustisquama wangruoxii sp. nov., †Diamogoplistes shiruolinae gen. et sp. nov. and †Protomogoplistes zhouzixuanae sp. nov.) are described, and a phylogenetic analysis is conducted to infer their phylogenetic status. Compared with extant species, these fossil species exhibit distinctive morphological characteristics, especially in their scales and wings. †Cretoornebius huzhengkuni sp. nov. and †An. wangruoxii sp. nov. show lanceolate scales, which morphologically resemble those on extant Mogoplistidae and specialized setae on many Myrmecophilidae species. †An. wangruoxii sp. nov. and †D. shiruolinae sp. nov. show developed fore- and hindwings, while †Cretoornebius huzhengkuni sp. nov. and †Protomogoplistes zhouzixuanae sp. nov. feature short forewings. Thus, the fossils prove that wing reduction in Mogoplistidae has occurred no later than the upper Cretaceous. The events of wing reduction or wing loss may have happened several times in Mogoplistidae. This study provides important insights into the morphological characters of Mogoplistidae during the Cretaceous and provides crucial morphological clues for understanding the evolution of this family.