49-MILLION-YEAR-OLD
COCKROACH FOSSIL FOUND
A common
European and African cockroach may have gotten its evolutionary start in North
America, according to new fossil findings.
More than 70 species of cockroaches in the genus Ectobius currently crawl
through Europe and Africa, making them amongst the most common cockroaches in
that part of the world. They measure only about 0.25 to 0.5 inches long (6.35
to 12.7 millimeters), considerably smaller than the American cockroaches
(Periplaneta Americana) that can grow to about 1.5 in. long (4 centimeters) and
plague major cities and small towns across the United States.
Researchers have previously thought that Ectobius first evolved in Europe and
Africa, scuttling around the region since at least 44 million years ago, based
on a specimen preserved in Baltic amber of this age. Now, researchers based at
the Slovak Academy of Sciences have discovered 49-million-year-old fossils of
four different Ectobius species
in northwest Colorado, pushing back the insects' first appearance on Earth by
roughly 5 million years and its place of origin as modern-day United States
rather than the Old World.
The ancient
species — discovered in sedimentary rocks dating back to a warm, humid geologic epoch known as the Eocene — have since gone extinct, for reasons that
remain unclear to the researchers. However, over the past 70 years or so, at
least four different Ectobius species
have made their way into parts of the United States and Canada.
"It was always assumed
that these four newcomers were the first Ectobius species
to have ever lived in North America," study co-author Conrad Labandeira of
the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Natural History said in a
statement. "But the discovery in Colorado proves that their relatives were
here nearly 50 million years ago."
Three of the four new species
have yet to be described in detail, because they are poorly preserved in the
rock. The best preserved has been named Ectobius
kohlsi,after fossil collector David Kohls who contributed all
of the study specimens along with nearly 150,000 other insect fossils to
Smithsonian's Department of Paleobiology.
The researchers analyzed 21
fossil specimens of E.kohlsi,
and were able to identify the specimens as members of the Ectobius genus based
on the distict coloration and wing vein patterns of this group.E. kohlsi individuals
were the smallest of the four ancient species discovered, with body lengths reaching
only about 0.4 inch (1 cm) and body widths of up to only 0.1 inch (3 mm), the
researchers report.
The researchers are not
certain how the Ectobius genus
made its way to the Eurasian continent, but have several theories. For example,
since sea levels were relatively low during the Eocene and continents were
closer together than they are today, the body of water that is now the Atlantic
Ocean would have been much narrower than it is today. This could have allowed
the insects to crawl through northeastern Canada, onto Greenland, and then into
Scandinavia, Labandeira told LiveScience.
Alternatively, the insects
could have traveled through the region known as Berengia — the area between Alaska and Siberia — and
made their way through Asia and into Europe from east to west, Labandeira said.
Though the researchers are not aware of any Ectobius fossils in Asia, they have not
ruled out the possibility that some exist but have yet to be discovered.
Labandeira said he was
surprised by the new findings, and that this is a good example how paleontology
can be very serendipitous.
"Much of our science is
actually unpredictable in the sense that you never know what you are going to
find," Labandeira said. "You open the door and there are mysteries.
So this is an example of finding something out of time and out of place, and it
leads into a very different interpretation of what actually happened."
Next, the team hopes to explore
other museum fossil collections to look for better preserved specimens of the
new Ectobius species
that they have yet to describe.
The findings are detailed
this month in the journal Annals of the Entomological Society of America.
SCHOLARSHIP COMMITTEE NEEDS ARTISTS
Know of
anyone that enjoys drawing? If so, the PCOC
Scholarship Committee is looking for volunteers to draw Christmas cards for the
2014 season. All proceeds from the sale
of these cards will go to the PCOC Scholarship Fund. Anyone interested in helping these deserving
students please email Nona Bradley at Nbradley@clarkpest.com.
PEST ED 2014
This year's
Pest Ed 2014 was a huge success. We had an increased attendance in Montebello.
Also, our new location in the north was a hit. I would like to thank Univar for
their partnership and work to make this event possible. In addition, I would
like to thank all the sponsors that participated. Without all of their help, we
could not offer this great program every year.
ACE CERTIFICATION PROGRAM
Become
an ASSOCIATE CERTIFIED ENTOMOLOGIST through the Entomological Society of
America. If you have a passion for insects and have worked more than seven (7) years in the
structural pest management industry, plus a state licence of any type through
the SPCB, you can take the class and exam to become an ACE! The NEXT CLASS AND
EXAMINATION IS AT UNIVAR USA, Los Angeles. Tuition $250. Classes severely
limited to under 12 applicants. FEBRUARY 7-8 2014. Contact Laurie Jo Jensen BCE
949-412-8773 or laurie@bugwizzards.com. Thanks to wonderful Sponsors Univar and Bayer.