Size reference
Source supportedFemale~56 mm; males 47–51 mm
2014 C. melanogramma adult sample; not a complete genus size range. [D1]
EXHIBIT 223
Cretophasmomima
Cretophasmomima
Prehistoric insect
Cretophasmomima was an early stick-insect relative; Chinese fossils preserve patterned wings and both sexes. [1]
TWO WAYS TO PICTURE THE PAST
Science & the silver screen
Compare the evidence with the familiar movie image. The illustrations are not to a shared scale.
01 / SOURCE-INFORMED RECONSTRUCTION
A life reconstruction from the evidence
Image unavailableIllustrative life reconstruction of Cretophasmomima in a period-appropriate environment; coloration and missing anatomy are interpretations.The exhibit and its credited image source remain available.
An illustrative reconstruction. Compare its anatomy with the evidence and limitations in the dossier. [1]
Source-informed reconstruction. Appearance evidence [1]. Original illustration; missing anatomy, coloration and scenery include interpretation.
Fossils constrain this life reconstruction. Missing anatomy, coloration and the environmental scene include interpretation; the dossier explains the evidence limits.
02 / MOVIE-STYLE INTERPRETATION
A cinematic imagination
Image unavailableIllustrative living reconstruction of Cretophasmomima; missing anatomy and exact colors remain uncertain.The exhibit and its credited image source remain available.
An illustrative reconstruction. Compare its anatomy with the evidence and limitations in the dossier. Lighting, coloration and scenery are artistic choices. This image does not document a fossil locality or behavior.
Original artwork · artistic interpretation.
Scientific view: source-informed reconstruction, credited paleoart or specimen-based imagery. Movie-style view: Original artistic interpretation. Reconstructions involve uncertainty.
PERIODEarly Cretaceous[2]
DIETPlant feeding inferredEvidence and uncertainty in the dossier
TOTAL LENGTHSee the dossierEstimate scope matters
FOSSILS FOUNDRussia, China, England[2]
MEET THE ANIMAL
Meet Cretophasmomima
Cretophasmomima was an early relative of stick insects, rather than a modern leaf insect. The Chinese species Cretophasmomima melanogramma is known from one female and two male fossils in the Early Cretaceous Yixian Formation. They preserve long wings and slender walking legs. Dark lines on the wings and alternating marks on the antennae are visible, although their exact living colors cannot be recovered. [D1]
The genus was not limited to China. Researchers described another species from a fossil forewing in the Weald Clay of southern England. Earlier named species also came from Russia. Wing-vein patterns help scientists compare these remains, but some old insect names are difficult to separate from fragments. A measurement from one well-preserved Chinese species should not become the size of every species in the genus. [D2]
Comparisons suggest that the Chinese insect fed on plants and could hide beside foliage. A later study discusses that possibility while investigating a different Jurassic stick insect. It does not provide a preserved meal for Cretophasmomima. Likewise, modern stick insects can have elaborate camouflage and mating behavior, but those habits cannot simply be assigned to an extinct relative without matching evidence. [D3]
PREHISTORIC ANIMAL DOSSIER
A life in profile.
The animal, the evidence, and the questions still open.
A genus can span several localities; an English forewing extends the record beyond the better-preserved Chinese species. [D2]
Profile scope: Genus — Cretophasmomima; gallery anchored to C. melanogramma from the Early Cretaceous Yixian Formation, China. [D1]
- Time
- Early Cretaceous
- Fossil locations in this exhibit
- Russia, China, England
How to read the evidence
Source supported identifies a description documented by the cited source. Inferred marks a reconstruction or functional estimate. Debated marks competing interpretations. Not established means the sources reviewed for this dossier do not support a firm conclusion; it does not mean a behavior never occurred.
A size reference is an estimate, not a population range. Nesting evidence does not by itself establish courtship, mate choice, or lifelong pairing.
Body mass
Not establishedNot established here
Reviewed descriptions provide no fossil-individual mass estimate. [D1]
Diet
InferredPlant feeding inferred
A later comparative study proposes foliage feeding; no preserved meal fixes C. melanogramma’s actual host. [D3]
Habitat
InferredJehol vegetation inferred
Wing pattern resembles a fossil leaf-shaped organ with debated botanical identity; host unknown. [D1]
Movement
InferredWalking and flight inferred
Legs and wings support these abilities; speed unknown. [D1]
Distinctive anatomy
Source supportedPatterned wings; female operculum
Longitudinal dark wing markings and antennal bands survive; the terminal operculum supports stick-insect affinity. [D1]
Reproduction & life together
Reproduction
Source supportedAdult sexes documented
A female operculum is preserved; eggs and oviposition sites are not established by the adult sample. [D1]
Courtship
Not establishedNot established here
Size differences do not preserve courtship or mate guarding. [D1]
Social behavior
Not establishedNot established here
Separate fossil adults do not show coordinated groups or colony organization. [D2]
Dossier research & sources
Sources and inspection notes for the claims in this profile.
- Under Cover at Pre-Angiosperm Times: A Cloaked Phasmatodean Insect from the Early Cretaceous Jehol BiotaPLOS ONE; Wang et al., 2014 · Accessed 2026-10-06Original full article/PDF inspected: one female and two male C. melanogramma specimens, female~56 mm and male47–51 mm description, wing/antenna pattern, female operculum, stem affinity, moderate size dimorphism and plant-organ identity limits. · Inspected: page
- A new stick insect (Phasmatodea: Susumanioidea) from the Lower Cretaceous Wealden Group of southern EnglandCretaceous Research; Xu, Jarzembowski & Fang, 2020 · Accessed 2026-10-06Indexed original abstract and publisher systematic/discussion excerpts inspected. C. traceyae forewing, genus composition including Russian and Chinese species, and ambiguous boundary with Promastacoides. Direct full publisher request was403; no unseen specimen detail adopted. · Inspected: excerpt
- Early specializations for mimicry and defense in a Jurassic stick insectNational Science Review; Yang et al., 2021 · Accessed 2026-10-06Original full body captured via EuropePMC and comparative discussion inspected. Direct described taxon is Aclistophasma; C. melanogramma plant feeding is a cited comparative hypothesis, not a preserved gut or secure host identification. · Inspected: page
THE STORY IN THE FOSSILS
Patterns before modern leaf insects
The English C. traceyae forewing broadens the genus record. A genus-level exhibit must therefore distinguish its shared name from details measured only in C. melanogramma. [2]
A note on scale and time
The dossier identifies the scope of each reference estimate. A mount, an individual fossil and a species-wide adult range are different measurements. Comparison metrics remain unavailable where adult scope has not been established. Unknown does not mean zero.
Sources & editorial notes
Sources support the stated claims and scopes. Refer to the evidence notes for uncertainty.
- Under Cover at Pre-Angiosperm Times: A Cloaked Phasmatodean Insect from the Early Cretaceous Jehol BiotaPLOS ONE; Wang et al., 2014 · Accessed 2026-10-06Original full article/PDF inspected: one female and two male C. melanogramma specimens, female~56 mm and male47–51 mm description, wing/antenna pattern, female operculum, stem affinity, moderate size dimorphism and plant-organ identity limits. · Inspected: page
- A new stick insect (Phasmatodea: Susumanioidea) from the Lower Cretaceous Wealden Group of southern EnglandCretaceous Research; Xu, Jarzembowski & Fang, 2020 · Accessed 2026-10-06Indexed original abstract and publisher systematic/discussion excerpts inspected. C. traceyae forewing, genus composition including Russian and Chinese species, and ambiguous boundary with Promastacoides. Direct full publisher request was403; no unseen specimen detail adopted. · Inspected: excerpt
- Early specializations for mimicry and defense in a Jurassic stick insectNational Science Review; Yang et al., 2021 · Accessed 2026-10-06Original full body captured via EuropePMC and comparative discussion inspected. Direct described taxon is Aclistophasma; C. melanogramma plant feeding is a cited comparative hypothesis, not a preserved gut or secure host identification. · Inspected: page
KEEP EXPLORING
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