TY - JOUR A1 - Haug,J.T. A1 - Nagler,C. A1 - Haug,C. A1 - Hö A1 - rnig,M.K. T1 - A group of assassin fly pupae preserved in a single piece of Eocene amber JF - Bulletin of Geosciences JA - Bull. Geosci. Y1 - 2017 VL - 92 IS - 3 SP - 283 EP - 295 CY - Prague PB - Czech Geological Survey SN - 1803-1943 (online), 1802-6222 (print) AV - Free KW - fossil pupa KW - Asilidae KW - Laphriinae KW - amber KW - fossilised behaviour AB - Holometabolous insects represent a mega-diverse group of organisms that are dominant in most terrestrial faunas. All holometabolous insects develop via a specific transitory stage between the last larval stage and the adult, called the pupa. While insects in general have a comparably good fossil record, fossils of pupae of holometabolous insects are relatively rare. We report here four pupal specimens preserved in a single piece of amber. These represent pupa stages of assassin flies, Asilidae, and are most likely representatives of Laphriinae. While dipterans are quite common in the fossil record, especially in amber, representatives of Asilidae are comparably rare. Combining the rarity of the systematic group and the rarity of the specific life stage, these fossil remains of assassin fly pupae are extremely unusual; to date only a single specimen has been depicted in the literature. We discuss the importance of our new finding and possible interpretations regarding behavioural aspects of the group enclosed in amber. ER -