On the probability of dinosaur fleas

BMC Evolutionary Biology

Correspondence

Qiyun Zhu¹  Katharina Dittmar²  Michael F. Whiting³  Michael W. Hastriter⁴ 

[1] Department of Biological Sciences, University at Buffalo, Cooke 109, 14260, Buffalo, NY, USA;Department of Biological Sciences, University at Buffalo, Cooke 109, 14260, Buffalo, NY, USA;Graduate Program of Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, 411 Cooke Hall, 14260, Buffalo, NY, USA;Department of Biology and M. L. Bean Museum, Brigham Young University, 4142 LSB, 84602, Provo, UT, USA;Monte L. Bean Museum, Brigham Young University, 336 MLB, 84602, Provo, UT, USA;

关键词: Fleas;    Dinosaurs;    Ectoparasites;    Siphonaptera;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12862-015-0568-x

 received in 2014-12-19, accepted in 2015-12-14,  发布年份 2016

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

Recently, a set of publications described flea fossils from Jurassic and Early Cretaceous geological strata in northeastern China, which were suggested to have parasitized feathered dinosaurs, pterosaurs, and early birds or mammals. In support of these fossils being fleas, a recent publication in BMC Evolutionary Biology described the extended abdomen of a female fossil specimen as due to blood feeding.We here comment on these findings, and conclude that the current interpretation of the evolutionary trajectory and ecology of these putative dinosaur fleas is based on appeal to probability, rather than evidence. Hence, their taxonomic positioning as fleas, or stem fleas, as well as their ecological classification as ectoparasites and blood feeders is not supported by currently available data.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© Dittmar et al. 2016