239 million year old insects discovered in Ticino
Published: Thursday, Aug 29th 2024, 11:40
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Excavations in Ticino have uncovered 248 fossil insects dating back 239 million years. Among the finds along the Gaggiolo stream near Meride is the oldest wasp found to date.
These insects from the Triassic period were brought to light during the paleontological excavations of the Cantonal Museum of Natural History of Ticino (MCSN) in Lugano between 2020 and 2023, as the Ticino authorities announced on Thursday. They date from the time before dinosaurs dominated the earth.
The discoveries shed light on the development of some insect groups after the mass extinction at the end of the Permian period around 251 million years ago, according to an article in the journal "Communications Biology", to which the Ticino authorities referred.
Despite their small dimensions of between 2 millimeters and 2.5 centimeters, the fossils discovered are exceptionally well preserved, which in turn allows their morphological details to be observed.
Both freshwater groups such as dragonflies and caddisflies and terrestrial groups such as cockroaches, bugs and wasps were found. Remarkable is the discovery of the oldest wasp discovered to date (Magnicapitixyela dilettae) and a female cockroach that has been preserved with its reproductive organs.
According to the Ticino authorities, the fossil collection kept at the Cantonal Museum of Natural History in Ticino makes a significant contribution to understanding the evolution of insects. It therefore also underlines the importance of the Unesco World Heritage Site Monte San Giorgio as a place of global interest, not only for its vertebrates, but also for paleontological research in the field of insects.
©Keystone/SDA
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