BEIJING, Dec. 11 (Xinhua) -- An international team of paleontologists has discovered a new species of insects that fed on dinosaur feathers in mid-Cretaceous amber.
Due to a lack of Mesozoic fossil records, the origins and early evolution of feather-feeding behaviors by insects are obscure. Blood-eating insects were found in the Jurassic and the Cretaceous period. Although feathered dinosaurs were common during this period, insects that fed on dinosaur feathers have not been reported before.
Researchers from the Capital Normal University in China and Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History in the United States found 10 specimens of the insect named Mesophthirus engeli, along with partially damaged dinosaur feathers in two pieces of Burmese amber dating back around 100 million years.
The insects, very similar to modern lice, had tiny wingless bodies and strong chewing mouthparts. One of the dinosaur feathers discovered in the amber was damaged by chewing and the signs of damage were similar to that of modern bird feathers with lice parasitic.
The finding demonstrates that feather-feeding behaviors of insects originated at least in the mid-Cretaceous period, accompanying the radiation of feathered dinosaurs including early birds.
The research was published in the journal Nature Communications.
