摘要：SummaryThe Cretaceous fossil record of amber provides a variety of evidence that is essential for greater understanding of early pollination strategies. Here, we describe four pieces of ca. 99-million-year-old (early Cenomanian) Myanmar amber from Kachin containing four closely related genera of short-winged flower beetles (Coleoptera: Kateretidae) associated with abundant pollen grains identified as three distinct palynomorphotypes of the gymnospermCycadopitesandPraenymphaeapollenites cenomaniensisgen. and sp. nov., a form-taxon of pollen from a basal angiosperm lineage of water lilies (Nymphaeales: Nymphaeaceae). We demonstrate how a gymnosperm to angiosperm plant-host shift occurred during the mid-Cretaceous, from a generalist pollen-feeding family of beetles, which served as a driving mechanism for the subsequent success of flowering plants.Graphical AbstractDisplay OmittedHighlights•A gymnosperm to angiosperm plant-host shift is denoted during the mid-Cretaceous•Kateretidae beetles are among the earliest pollinators of angiosperms•Mesozoic direct evidences of angiosperm pollination just started to arise•Praenymphaeapollenitesis defined as a new angiosperm pollen morphotypeBiological Sciences; Evolutionary Biology; Evolutionary Ecology; Paleobiology
