Earliest fossil record of Eucradinae in mid-Cretaceous amber from northern Myanmar (Coleoptera: Ptinidae)

Abstract

Ptinidae is currently a diverse family of beetles with a sparse Mesozoic fossil record. Here a new ptinid fossil, Granulobium whitei Li, Philips & Cai gen. et sp. nov., is reported from mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber, which represents the earliest record of the extant subfamily Eucradinae. Granulobium can be recognized within Eucradinae by its coarsely granulated pronotum with no carinae or ridges, narrowly separated procoxae, irregularly punctate elytra, and relatively short abdominal ventrite 4. Our discovery indicates that Mesozoic Ptinidae were more biodiverse than previously appreciated.