''Ektatotricha'' is an extinct, monotypic, genus of ant-like stone beetle in the family

Staphylinidae The rove beetles are a family (Staphylinidae) of beetles, primarily distinguished by their short elytra (wing covers) that typically leave more than half of their abdominal segments exposed. With roughly 63,000 species in thousands of genera, the ...

containing the single species ''Ektatotricha paradoxa''. The genus is known from a total of 15 specimens in amber from amber deposits near Tanai Village northwest of Myitkyina in the Kachin region of Myanmar. Burmese amber has been

radiometrically dated Radiometric dating, radioactive dating or radioisotope dating is a technique which is used to date materials such as rocks or carbon, in which trace radioactive impurities were selectively incorporated when they were formed. The method compares t ...

using U- Pb isotopes, yielding an age of approximately 99 million years old, close to the

Aptian The Aptian is an age in the geologic timescale or a stage in the stratigraphic column. It is a subdivision of the Early or Lower Cretaceous Epoch or Series and encompasses the time from 121.4 ± 1.0 Ma to 113.0 ± 1.0 Ma (million years ago), a ...

–

Cenomanian The Cenomanian is, in the ICS' geological timescale, the oldest or earliest age of the Late Cretaceous Epoch or the lowest stage of the Upper Cretaceous Series. An age is a unit of geochronology; it is a unit of time; the stage is a unit in the s ...

boundary. The holotype, a single, complete adult with specimen number "AMNH Bu-1464", and six of the paratypes are now deposited in the

American Museum of Natural History The American Museum of Natural History (abbreviated as AMNH) is a natural history museum on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. In Theodore Roosevelt Park, across the street from Central Park, the museum complex comprises 26 inter ...

. Four more of the paratypes are deposited in the University of Kansas Natural History Museum collections in

Lawrence, Kansas Lawrence is the county seat of Douglas County, Kansas, Douglas County, Kansas, United States, and the sixth-largest city in the state. It is in the northeastern sector of the state, astride Interstate 70, between the Kansas River, Kansas and Waka ...

, USA. The remaining two paratype specimens are currently in a private collection, but are to be deposited in the

Field Museum of Natural History The Field Museum of Natural History (FMNH), also known as The Field Museum, is a natural history museum in Chicago, Illinois, and is one of the largest such museums in the world. The museum is popular for the size and quality of its educational ...

, Chicago. In addition to the holotype and 12 paratypes, two other American Museum of Natural History specimens were examined as part of the study; however, they were not designated as type material.

Background

The known ''Ektatotricha'' specimens were first studied by Drs

Stylianos Chatzimanolis Stylianos of Paphlagonia (Latin: ''Stylianus'', Greek: ''Στυλιανός'', English: ''Stylian''), also known as Stylianos the Hermit, is venerated as a saint from Adrianopolis in the province of Paphlagonia (modern Turkey). Life Styliano ...

of the University of Tennessee,

Michael Engel Michael S. Engel, FLS, FRES (born September 24, 1971) is an American paleontologist and entomologist, notable for contributions to insect evolutionary biology and classification. In connection with his studies he has undertaken field expedit ...

of the University of Kansas, and Alfred Newton of the

Field Museum The Field Museum of Natural History (FMNH), also known as The Field Museum, is a natural history museum in Chicago, Illinois, and is one of the largest such museums in the world. The museum is popular for the size and quality of its educational ...

. Chatzimanolis, Engel and Newton published the 2010

type description A species description is a formal description of a newly discovered species, usually in the form of a scientific paper. Its purpose is to give a clear description of a new species of organism and explain how it differs from species that have be ...

for ''E. paradoxa'' in the journal ''

Cretaceous Research ''Cretaceous Research'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed scientific journal published by Elsevier. The journal focuses on topics dealing with the Cretaceous period and the Cretaceous–Paleogene boundary. Abstracting and indexing The journal is abst ...

'', Volume 31. The genus name is a feminine combination of the Greek ''ektatos'', meaning "extended", which refers to the visible fifth and sixth abdominal sterna, and ''tricha'' meaning "hair". The species name ''paradoxa'' is from the Greek ''paradoxon'', meaning "riddle".

Description

The beetles are small, being between long. Their bodies are brown to reddish brown in color and have a dense covering of hairs which are notably long. Because the fifth and sixth abdominal sterna are extended, and thus visible, the genus has been placed in the

Scydmaeninae Scydmaeninae are a subfamily of small beetles, commonly called ant-like stone beetles or scydmaenines. These beetles occur worldwide, and the subfamily includes some 4,500 species in about 80 genera. Established as a family, they were reduced in ...

, supertribe Hapsomelitae. ''Ektatotricha'' differs from the other member of the supertribe, '' Hapsomela'', by having maxillary palpi which are almost equal in length, a different antenna shape, and by the depth of the punctures on the fore wings. Like ''Hapsomela'', the protibia of ''Ektatotricha'' have a well-developed hook, which may have been used in mating or male-male combat between rivals. It has also been suggested that the hooks may have been used to capture prey.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q5350605, from2=Q21271596

† A dagger, obelisk, or obelus is a typographical mark that usually indicates a footnote if an asterisk has already been used. The symbol is also used to indicate death (of people) or extinction (of species). It is one of the modern descendan ...

Fossil beetle genera Cretaceous insects Fossil taxa described in 2010 Cretaceous insects of Asia Burmese amber Fossils of Myanmar