Oldest-Known Ant Fossil Found in Brazil Preserved in Limestone

Oldest-known Ant Fossil Found in Brazil Preserved in Limestone

Scientists have identified the fossilized remains of the oldest-known ant — a winged insect with fearsome scythe-like jaws that lived about 113 million years ago during the age of dinosaurs and was preserved in limestone unearthed in northeastern Brazil.

World’s oldest ant fossil found in Brazil, dating back 113 million years

A “remarkably well-preserved” fossil discovered in Brazil, dating back 113 million years, is now the oldest ant to have ever been found by scientists, a new study has revealed. The ancient fossil was found preserved in a limestone and “represents the earliest undisputed ant known to science,” the authors write in the study. The limestone, originating from the Crato Formation, a fossil site in Ceará state in northeastern Brazil, where several pre…