Shore bug or minute litter bug: The systematic position of heteropteran genus Leptosaldinea from mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber

The heteropteran monotypic genus Leptosaldinea from mid-Cretaceous Kachin amber was originally ascribed into leptopodomorphan Leptopodidae: Leptosaldinae. In the present paper, we report Leptosaldinea zhengmingi Chen and Zhuo, sp. nov. from the same amber biota. The new species distinctly differs from its congener by some critical body structure traits. This genus herein is proposed to be transferred from Leptopodomorpha (shore bugs) to Dipsocoromorpha (minute litter bugs) based upon a series of morphological traits displayed in its type species as well as our new taxon, which are discriminative characteristics for dipsocoromorphans but are absent amongst fossil and living leptopodomorphans. This genus is further proposed to be assigned into the ancient schizopterid subfamily Hypselosomatinae. Our new find not only clarifies the systematic position of Leptosaldinea, but also adds the biodiversity and disparity of ancient minute litter bugs in the late Mesozoic.