Portuguese scientists discover 298 million-year-old insect nymph fossil
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Researchers at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto in Portugal discovered a new insect nymph fossil near Vale de Cambra, in the Aveiro district.
Sara Silva, a doctoral student in Geosciences, found the fossil while exploring an open-pit coal mine in Pejão, within the Douro Carboniferous Basin. The nymph, which resembles a dragonfly, lived approximately 298 million years ago during the late Carboniferous period.
Insect nymphs from this period are rare and difficult to categorize because scientists usually identify insect groups based on adult fossils. Helena Couto, a retired professor from the University of Porto, joined Silva to identify the species. They believe the nymph lived in water, based on its bulky abdomen and large, forward-facing hind legs.
The discovery was published in the international journal Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie with contributions from André Nel, an entomologist at the National Museum of Natural History in France, and Torsten Wappler, a paleontologist and entomologist at the University of Bonn. The team hopes to find a better-preserved specimen to examine the head structures and early wing development, which could allow for a more precise identification.
Currently, the fossil does not match any known Paleozoic nymphs, indicating a previously unknown species.
