Mycophagous rove beetles highlight diverse mushrooms in the Cretaceous

Chenyang Cai, Richard A. B. Leschen, David S Hibbett, Fangyuan Xia and Diying Huang ()
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Chenyang Cai: Key Laboratory of Economic Stratigraphy and Palaeogeography, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Richard A. B. Leschen: Landcare Research, New Zealand Arthropod Collection
David S Hibbett: Clark University
Fangyuan Xia: Lingpoge Amber Museum
Diying Huang: State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences

Nature Communications, 2017, vol. 8, issue 1, 1-7

Abstract: Abstract Agaricomycetes, or mushrooms, are familiar, conspicuous and morphologically diverse Fungi. Most Agaricomycete fruiting bodies are ephemeral, and their fossil record is limited. Here we report diverse gilled mushrooms (Agaricales) and mycophagous rove beetles (Staphylinidae) from mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber, the latter belonging to Oxyporinae, modern members of which exhibit an obligate association with soft-textured mushrooms. The discovery of four mushroom forms, most with a complete intact cap containing distinct gills and a stalk, suggests evolutionary stasis of body form for ∼99 Myr and highlights the palaeodiversity of Agaricomycetes. The mouthparts of early oxyporines, including enlarged mandibles and greatly enlarged apical labial palpomeres with dense specialized sensory organs, match those of modern taxa and suggest that they had a mushroom feeding biology. Diverse and morphologically specialized oxyporines from the Early Cretaceous suggests the existence of diverse Agaricomycetes and a specialized trophic interaction and ecological community structure by this early date.

Date: 2017
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DOI: 10.1038/ncomms14894

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