Amber, known as nature’s “time capsule,” provides a unique window into Earth’s history and the evolution of life. It not only preserves the morphology of ancient organisms but also records environmental information from prehistoric times, making it a crucial medium for paleontological research. Currently, the oldest known amber containing biological inclusions comes from the Triassic strata of Italy, while all other amber with biological inclusions dates to the Cretaceous or later, such as Cretaceous Burmese amber, Eocene Fushun amber, and Miocene Dominican amber. Jurassic amber has long remained a gap in research.
Recently, a research team led by Professor Dany Azar from the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Paleontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, discovered a precious Jurassic insect fossil in amber from the Late Jurassic (Kimmeridgian) in Aintourine, northern Lebanon. This discovery not only fills the gap in the Mesozoic amber fossil record but also provides important clues for studying insect evolutionary history. The fossil, named Jankotejacoccus libanogloria, is the earliest known Jurassic amber insect inclusion, revealing that male characteristics of scale insects appeared in the early stages of evolution.
Lebanon is renowned in paleontology for its rich amber deposits. Under the leadership of Dany Azar, researchers have identified over 500 amber outcrops from the Early Cretaceous in Lebanon, 31 of which contain biological inclusions, along with 19 outcrops from the Late Jurassic. This period is crucial in the study of terrestrial ecosystem evolution, as it marks the emergence of angiosperms and the co-evolutionary relationship between plants and pollinating insects.
The newly discovered Jankotejacoccus libanogloria is a herbivorous adult male scale insect, significantly different from all other scale insects, and has been classified into a new family. The fossil reveals that male characteristics of scale insects, including morphological and behavioral transformations, appeared early in their evolution. The Late Jurassic primitive male scale insect fossils are morphologically related to modern groups and coexisted with the dominant gymnosperms of the time. Associated marine fossils and zircon analysis support its age as Kimmeridgian.
The Aintourine amber is proven to originate from the gymnosperm family Cheirolepidiaceae. The semi-angular morphology of the sediment-amber boundary suggests that the low viscosity of the resin may have contributed to the rarity of biological preservation in such amber, although other factors (e.g., resin flow or taphonomic processes) may also have played a role. Associated plant materials in the amber include Protopodocarpoxylon, Brachyphyllum, Classostrobus, and Classopolis pollen from the Cheirolepidiaceae. The paleoenvironment has been reconstructed as a forested temporary swamp habitat, with tall araucarias, ginkgoes, shrub ferns, tree ferns, and aquatic ferns. The amber is typically transparent, containing fungal spores, minerals, and organic debris (charcoal, leaves, wood, and fungi). There is no evidence of long-distance transport or redeposition, suggesting the depositional environment was near the amber-producing trees. However, whether these trees dominated the forest remains uncertain, as they may have coexisted with other species.
This discovery not only provides new insights into the origins of amber forest ecosystems but also paves the way for further research on evolution and biodiversity. Future studies on Lebanese amber deposits and findings are expected to enhance our understanding of the early development of modern ecosystems and offer more insights into the biodiversity and terrestrial evolution of the mid-Mesozoic.
This research was supported by the Chinese Academy of Sciences Hundred Talents Program (Category A).
Article Information:
Peter Vršanský*, Hemen Sendi, Júlia Kotulová, Jacek Szwedo, Martina Havelcová, Helena Palková, Lucia Vršanská, Jakub Sakala, L'ubica Puškelová, Marián Golej, Adrian Biroň, Daniel Peyrot, Donald Quicke, Didier Néraudeau, Pavel Uher, Sibelle Maksoud, Dany Azar*, 2025. Jurassic Park approached: a coccid from Kimmeridgian cheirolepidiacean Aintourine Lebanese amber. National Science Review, Volume 12: nwae200, https://doi.org/10.1093/nsr/nwae200
Reconstruction of the Jurassic amber ecosystem in Aintourine, northern Lebanon (Image by: Júlia Káčerová).
Jurassic amber forest of Aintourine and fossil evidence from the perspective of dinosaurs (Image by: Júlia Káčerová).
Male scale insect Jankotejacoccus libanogloria from Jurassic amber in Lebanon.
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