Department of Integrative Biology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, 97331, USA.
Sustainable Perennial Crops Laboratory, U. S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville, MD, 20705, USA.
Arthropod Struct Dev. 2019 Jul;51:37-40. doi: 10.1016/j.asd.2019.100879. Epub 2019 Aug 12.
The knobbed setae on a small caterpillar in 45-55 million years old [Eocene] Baltic amber were studied and characterized as urticating, with evidence of liquid release implying the production of poisons. It is presumed that the caterpillar had been disturbed just prior to falling into the resin, as some of its setae showed defensive responses. The swollen tips of the setae are equipped with "trip hairs" and when disturbed, the tips release liquid deposits, some of which contain rod-like bodies. These setal responses to a disturbance are the first report of poisonous setal defense mechanisms in a fossil insect.
对保存在 4500 万至 5500 万年前（始新世）波罗的海琥珀中的一只小型毛毛虫身上的具节刚毛进行了研究和特征描述，发现这些刚毛具有蜇刺功能，并有液体释放的证据，表明产生了毒素。据推测，毛毛虫在掉进树脂之前就已经受到了干扰，因为它的一些刚毛表现出了防御反应。刚毛肿胀的尖端配备了“绊毛”，受到干扰时，尖端会释放出液体沉积物，其中一些含有杆状物体。这些对干扰的刚毛反应是化石昆虫中首次报道的有毒刚毛防御机制。
