Rove beetles roving on an ancient globe: Mesozoic fossils bend biogeography (Coleoptera: Staphylinidae)

The beetle family Staphylinidae, the largest beetle family with over 57,000 described species, occurs worldwide. It is divided into 32 subfamilies varying in size from a single species (Empelinae, Neophoninae, and Solieriinae) to over 15,000 (Aleocharinae), covering the globe in a varied patchwork of widespread and narrowly distributed groups.  Newly discovered and described Mesozoic fossils from China (compression fossils from the Middle Jurassic Daohugou biota, ~165 Ma, and Early Cretaceous Yixian Formation, ~125 Ma), Myanmar (amber, early Late Cretaceous, ~99 Ma) and Lebanon (amber, ?Lower Cretaceous, ~145–120 Ma) (1) reveal that some now narrowly distributed taxa were formerly much more widespread and (2) increase the known antiquity of numerous higher taxa.  These fossils necessitate reconsideration of the historical biogeography of Staphylinidae, contribute to understanding the morphological evolution of the group, and will serve as valuable time controls for ongoing phylogenetic studies.