Advanced morphology and behaviour of extinct earwig-like cockroaches (Blattida: Fuziidae fam. nov.)

Abstract

Advanced morphology and behaviour of extinct earwig-like cockroaches (Blattida: Fuziidae fam. nov.) We describe the extinct cockroach family Fuziidae fam. nov., represented by Fuzia dadao gen. et sp. nov. from the ?Bathonian (168 Ma) Middle Jurassic sediments of Daohugou, Inner Mongolia, China. Males are characterized by unique, long and narrow bodies with a notch on forceps of earwig-like cerci, which attaches to the long external ovipositor during courtship. In a combination with the presence of male tergal glands, it appears the most advanced form of reproduction in the nearly 300 Myr history of long external ovipositor-bearing cockroaches. Its advanced morphology significantly supports attribution of living and fossil cockroaches within a single order Blattida.