琥珀中發(fā)現(xiàn)1億年前的黏液霉菌

琥珀中發(fā)現(xiàn)1億年前的黏液霉菌

Researchers have discovered a 100-million-year-old slime mold and a lizard leg perfectly preserved in amber from a tree in Myanmar, a find described as “unique.”

研究人員在緬甸一棵樹(shù)上，發(fā)現(xiàn)了1億年前的黏菌和一條保存完好的蜥蜴腿，該發(fā)現(xiàn)被稱(chēng)為“獨(dú)一無(wú)二”。

Also known as myxomycetes, these tiny slime molds are single-celled organisms that largely live in soil or rotting wood, feasting on bacteria. Occasionally, they can join together “to form complex, beautiful and delicate fruiting bodies, which serve to make and spread spores,” according to the press release.

這些微小的黏菌也被稱(chēng)為黏菌，它們是單細(xì)胞生物，主要生活在土壤或腐爛的木材中，以細(xì)菌為食。根據(jù)新聞稿，它們偶爾會(huì)結(jié)合在一起，“形成復(fù)雜、美麗和精致的子實(shí)體，用于制造和傳播孢子”。

Finding fossilized versions of these slime molds is extremely rare, with only two confirmed reports of fruiting bodies found prior, both of which are between 35 million and 40 million years old.

發(fā)現(xiàn)這些黏菌的化石版本是極其罕見(jiàn)的，在此之前只發(fā)現(xiàn)了兩具確認(rèn)的子實(shí)體，都在3500萬(wàn)到4000萬(wàn)年前之間。

“The fragile fruiting bodies were most likely torn from the tree bark by a lizard, which was also caught in the sticky tree resin and finally embedded in it together with the reptile,” said one of the study’s authors, Jouko Rikkinen, in the statement.

研究報(bào)告的作者之一Jouko Rikkinen在聲明中說(shuō):“這些脆弱的子實(shí)體很可能是被一只蜥蜴從樹(shù)皮上撕下來(lái)的，這只蜥蜴也被黏在樹(shù)樹(shù)脂里，最后和爬行動(dòng)物一起被埋在樹(shù)皮里。”

It’s possible that the lizard detached the fruiting bodies from the myxomycetes at an early stage, unlocking information for the researchers to study.

蜥蜴可能在早期就將子實(shí)體與黏菌分離，為研究人員提供了信息。

“The fossil provides unique insights into the longevity of the ecological adaptations of myxomycetes,” paleontologist Alexander Schmidt added.

古生物學(xué)家亞歷山大·施密特補(bǔ)充說(shuō):“這個(gè)化石為黏菌的生態(tài)適應(yīng)性壽命提供了獨(dú)特的見(jiàn)解。”

The study has been published in the journal Scientific Reports.

這項(xiàng)研究發(fā)表在《科學(xué)報(bào)告》雜志上。