New fossil genus and species of Yuripopovinidae (Insecta: Heteroptera, Coreoidea) from the Lower Cretaceous Jinju Formation, South Korea, with insights into the evolution of exaggerated antennae in the family

Abstract

A new genus and species of Yuripopovinidae, Jinjupopovina eosahwae gen. et sp. nov. is described based on a piece of fragmentary fossil specimen from the lower Cretaceous Jinju Formation in Jinju City, South Korea. This species is the first record of Yuripopovinidae and the only heteropteran whose taxonomic status is reliably identified from the stratigraphic layer. Its antennal morphology provides a rare example of simultaneous enlargement in length and width among Heteroptera. Advantages and disadvantages of this antennal modification are discussed with references of other fossil and extant coreoids whose antennae are exaggerated. Our findings suggest that the antennae of Jinjupopovina facilitated visual signaling among infra-specific individuals or between reproductive partners. Evolutionary trends of the antennae in Yuripopovinidae are discussed with insights from Jinjupopovina.