Synchrotronia idinineteena

Overview

Synchrotronia idinineteena is a small beetle revealed by X-rays inside opaque amber. Its three-dimensional body could be studied even within amber difficult to see through. It brings an ancient insect together with modern observation technology.^[1]

Key facts

The genus name Synchrotronia honors the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, where the specimen was detected and reconstructed. The species name idinineteena comes from the ID19 beamline used for imaging. The organism’s name thus includes the equipment that made its discovery possible.^[1]

Time and place

The type specimen came from the Archingeay–Les Nouillers amber locality in Charente-Maritime, present-day southwestern France. The describing paper identifies its horizon as latest Albian, near the end of the Early Cretaceous. A tiny insect in amber provides a window into the forest of that time.^[1]

The time range describes source context, not the complete duration of this species.

Size, form and skeleton

The type specimen’s reported body length is 3.2 mm. Its elongated oval body is convex above, with a broad prothorax and closed elytra. The antennae are described as weakly serrate, without club-like thickening at their tips.^[1]

Habitat and reproduction

The paper describes the amber-producing forest as warm and humid, probably influenced by coastal or marine conditions. The resin that became amber is presented as originating from gymnosperms. This beetle’s material can be considered within the geological setting of forests and coasts.^[1]

Fossil discovery

The amber was completely opaque, making conventional observation inside difficult. Researchers imaged its interior with synchrotron X-ray microtomography and reconstructed three-dimensional surfaces. The same specimen illustrated in 2006 was described as a new genus and species in 2014.^[1]

References

1. First fossil record of polypore fungus beetles from Lower Cretaceous amber of France
2. Lin et al. (2016) — Reading Jurassic insects through long proboscises and wing veins

Research questions

The three-dimensional data even allowed cross-sectional views of hind wings beneath the closed elytra. Meanwhile, the abdominal dorsal plates were described as deformed by drying. Researchers examined exterior and interior together to distinguish the insect’s body from changes during preservation.^[1]

Observation

The illustration was based on the description of type specimen IGR.ARC-330.1 and CT surfaces viewed from six directions. These six views depict one specimen from different orientations. The broad prothorax and closed elytra are central, while color, leg alignment, and body volume were added as interpretations of its appearance in life.^[1]