The piece of Russian amber allowed scientists to recreate the ancient scene from the past and understand current animal behavior.
Trapped in the act 38 million years ago, two termites have revealed how fossilized amber can reveal insights into ancient mating behavior.were preserved side to side, instead of front to back, as occurs in modern-day termites. Called “tandem running,” this occurs when one animal follows right behind the other, like train cars, with the second insect holding onto the abdomen of the first to keep them from separating.
Chouvenc, who was not involved in the research, called the work a “remarkable crossover between paleontology and behavioral ecology.”A piece of fossilized amber begins when tree resin flows from damaged trees. Insects on the tree can get stuck in the resin, and when more flows down the trunk, the captors are usually killed, frozen in time.
First, the team of four experts performed an micro-CT scan to discern the termite pair’s species and sex, which showed a female holding onto the abdomen of a male.Many of the lab termites escaped the gluey trap. In the pairs that did get entangled, the animal tandem running in front would naturally slow down, attempting to escape the goo.
These findings suggest the extinct termites behaved the same way, 38 million years ago, according to the study.
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