Pseudopulex

Pseudopulex Temporal range: Middle Jurassic to Early Cretaceous, 165–125 Ma PreЄ Є O S D C P T J K Pg N

Restoration of P. jurassicus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Class:	Insecta
Order:	incertae sedis
Family:	Pseudopulicidae
Genus:	Pseudopulex Tai-ping Gao, Chung-kun Shih, Xing Xu, Shuo Wan, Dong Ren, 2012
Species
P. jurassicus P. magnus

Pseudopulex is a genus of extinct, flea-like, parasitic insects that once fed on dinosaurs.^[1]

The two species, Pseudopulex jurassicus and Pseudopulex magnus, are similar to modern fleas, but their bodies were more compressed, and they had longer claws which they used to hold on tightly to dinosaurs or pterosaurs. They were also 10 times as large as modern fleas and possessed serrated stylets, likely for feeding on blood through thick layers of skin.^[2]

Discovery

Fossils of Pseudopulex jurassicus are known from the middle Jurassic-aged Jiulongshan Formation, 165 million years old.^[3] Fossils of Pseudopulex magnus are from the Early Cretaceous Yixian Formation, 125 million years old.

References

↑ "'Giant flea fed on dinosaur blood like mosquitoes' - NY Daily News". India.nydailynews.com. Retrieved 2012-05-02.
↑ Gao, Tai-ping; Shih, Chung-kun; Xu, Xing; Wang, Shuo; Ren, Dong (1 April 2012). "Mid-Mesozoic Flea-like Ectoparasites of Feathered or Haired Vertebrates". Current Biology. 22 (8): 732–735. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2012.03.012.
↑ "Ancient fleas plagued ancient dinosaurs". UPI.com. Retrieved 2012-05-02.

Wikispecies has information related to: Pseudopulex

Insecta orders

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
(unranked): Pancrustacea
Subphylum: Hexapoda

Extant

Monocondylia	Archaeognatha (jumping bristletails)

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Apterygota *	Thysanura (Zygentoma) (silverfish, firebrats)

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Palaeoptera

Ephemeropteroidea	Ephemeroptera (mayflies)

Odonatoptera	Odonata (dragonflies, damselflies)

N
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Polyneoptera

Dictyoptera	Blattodea (cockroaches, termites) Mantodea (mantises)

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Paraneoptera *	Psocodea (barklice, lice) Thysanoptera (thrips) Hemiptera (cicadas, aphids, true bugs)

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basal

Hymenoptera (sawflies, wasps, ants, bees)

Neuropteroidea

Coleopterida	Strepsiptera (twisted-winged parasites) Coleoptera (beetles)

Neuropterida	Raphidioptera (snakeflies) Megaloptera (alderflies, dobsonflies, fishflies) Neuroptera (net-winged insects: lacewings, mantidflies, antlions)

Panorpida
(Mecopterida)

Antliophora	Mecoptera (scorpionflies) + Siphonaptera (fleas) Diptera (gnats, mosquitoes, flies)

Amphiesmenoptera	Trichoptera (caddisflies) Lepidoptera (moths, butterflies)

Four most speciose orders are marked in bold

Italic are paraphyletic groups

Based on Sasaki et al. (2013)

Extinct

Alienoptera Archodonata Blattoptera Caloneurodea Campylopteridae Carbotriplurida Coxoplectoptera Diaphanopterodea Eoblattodea Eocoronidae Eudiaphanoptera Erasipteridae Gerarus Geroptera Glosselytrodea Heraridea Hypoperlida Lapeyriidae Meganisoptera (griffinflies or "giant dragonflies") Megasecoptera Mendozachorista Miomoptera Monura Palaeodictyoptera Paoliida Permoplecoptera Protanisoptera Protelytroptera Protephemerida Protodiptera Protorthoptera Protozygoptera Pseudopulex Rhyniognatha Syntonoptera Titanoptera Triadophlebioptera

Extinct incertae sedis families and genera are marked in italic

Wikispecies

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