2026/05/05 by Ivona Kočárková, Pavlína Frolová, Petr Kočárek · 1 voice
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Earth and Planetary Sciences · #Coleoptera Taxonomy and Distribution #Fossil Insects in Amber #Scarabaeidae Beetle Taxonomy and Biogeography
paper · doi:10.1163/18759866-bja10095
openalex publication_date 2026/05/05 · openalex created_date 2026/05/08 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Abstract Zoraptera represents a species-poor evolutionary lineage of polyneopteran insects with a relict circumtropical distribution. This study presents a comprehensive phylogeny, evolutionary timeline, and historical biogeography of all recognized Zoraptera subfamilies, based on analyses of 18 species representing eight genera using multi-gene datasets from both mitochondrial and nuclear loci. It utilizes 12 polyneopteran fossils as calibration points, including two amber fossils of Zoraptera. The Bayesian time-calibrated molecular phylogenetic tree inferred in BEAST suggests that the major Zoraptera lineages, Zorotypidae and Spiralizoridae, probably originated on the supercontinent Pangaea (~309 Mya). Zorotypinae and Latinozorinae maintained a circumtropical distribution until the Mesozoic/Cenozoic boundary. Subsequently, both subfamilies became extinct in Africa, and Latinozorinae also disappeared in Asia. We estimate that the Spiralizorinae diversified during the Late Triassic period in south-western Gondwana, while the ancestor of Spermozorinae emerged in the eastern Laurasia and remained restricted to present-day Southeast Asia. The current circumtropical distribution reflects a complex evolutionary history marked by significant distributional changes and extinctions, and contributes to our understanding of tropical insect biogeography.