State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China.
Institut für Zoologie und Evolutionsforschung, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, Jena 07743, Germany.
Sci Adv. 2024 Oct 25;10(43):eadr2201. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.adr2201.
Insects have evolved diverse ecological flight behaviors and adaptations that played a key role in their large-scale evolutionary patterns. However, the evolution of their flight performance is poorly understood because reconstructing flight abilities of extinct insects is highly challenging. Here, we propose an integrated approach to reveal the evolution of flight performance of Palaeontinidae (giant cicadas), a Mesozoic arboreal insect clade with large bodies and wings. Our analyses unveil a faunal turnover from early to late Palaeontinidae during the latest Jurassic-earliest Cretaceous, accompanied by a morphological adaptive shift and remarkable improvement in flight abilities including increased flight speed and enhanced maneuverability. The adaptive aerodynamic evolution of Palaeontinidae may have been stimulated by the rise of early birds, supporting the hypothesis of an aerial evolutionary arms race (Air Race) between Palaeontinidae and birds. Our results provide a potential example of predator-induced morphological and behavioral macroevolution and contribute to our understanding of how powered flight has shaped animal evolution.
昆虫已经进化出多样化的生态飞行行为和适应性，这些行为和适应性在它们的大规模进化模式中发挥了关键作用。然而，它们的飞行性能的进化仍不清楚，因为重建已灭绝昆虫的飞行能力极具挑战性。在这里，我们提出了一种综合方法来揭示 Palaeontinidae（巨型蝉）的飞行性能进化，这是一个具有大型身体和翅膀的中生代树栖昆虫类群。我们的分析揭示了从晚侏罗世到早白垩世 Palaeontinidae 的动物群更替，伴随着形态适应性转变和飞行能力的显著提高，包括飞行速度的提高和操纵性的增强。Palaeontinidae 的适应空气动力学进化可能是由早期鸟类的兴起所刺激的，支持了 Palaeontinidae 和鸟类之间的空中进化军备竞赛（Air Race）假说。我们的结果提供了一个潜在的例子，说明形态和行为的宏观进化是由捕食者诱导的，并有助于我们理解动力飞行如何塑造动物进化。
