A newly discovered 'hell ant' fossil may be the oldest ant ever found, scientists say.

A remarkable scientific breakthrough has emerged from Brazil, where researchers have unearthed what is potentially the oldest known ant fossil, dating back approximately 113 million years to the Cretaceous period. This newly-discovered ant, named Vulcanidris cratensis, belongs to an extinct subfamily known as hell ants, distinguished by their bizarre, scythe-like upward-facing jaws that likely served a predatory purpose. According to Anderson Lepeco, a researcher at the Zoological Museum of the University of São Paulo and co-author of the study published on April 24 in the journal Current Biology, this discovery provides crucial insight into the evolutionary timeline and ecological adaptability of ants. The excellently preserved fossil was found in the Crato Formation in northeastern Brazil, an area known for its exceptional fossil preservation conditions. Previously, the oldest known hell ants were established at about 100 million years ago and were primarily found preserved in amber. The existence of a hell ant fossil in rock formation represents a groundbreaking find suggesting that these ants had a broader geographical and temporal distribution than previously thought. Lepeco underlines the importance of this discovery, emphasizing that it challenges long-held assumptions about ant evolution and their predatory sophistication relative to contemporary species. Notably, this particular extinct species had demonstrably specialized features that hint at advanced hunting strategies, positing a rapid evolutionary trajectory that could recalibrate our understanding of how quickly complex traits emerged within the ant lineage. The research is a watershed moment not only for Brazilian paleontology but also for the global understanding of ant evolution. Previous fossils largely found in amber restricted researchers’ ability to study the life forms in a stratigraphic context. The implications of Vulcanidris cratensis' anatomy—like its unique jaw structure—suggest that even the earliest ants were adept predators, insinuating a developed ecological role long before previously established timelines. In essence, these findings redirect the narrative of ant evolution towards an earlier and potentially more dynamic growth phase than what has been inferred from existing fossils. With implications spanning evolutionary biology, ecology, and the distribution patterns of ancient terrestrial fauna, the import of this fossil discovery is monumental. It showcases the importance of revisiting and analyzing existing museum collections to unearth extraordinary insights hidden in even the smallest specimens. The research also highlights significant advancements in imaging technology that allow scientists to examine soft anatomical structures preserved in fossilized materials. This is particularly crucial, as the complexity of evolutionary adaptations displayed by Vulcanidris cratensis raises new questions regarding the influences of environmental changes on evolutionary adaptations over millions of years in the Cretaceous period.