Student discovers rare fossil in Gansu

A student at the Nanjing Institute of Geology and Paleontology under the Chinese Academy of Sciences has discovered a 120 million-year-old fossil that belonged to an ancestor of the modern long-horned grasshopper.

The fossil, found in Yumen in Gansu province, preserved a 3-centimenter section of the ancient insect's wing.

"Most insects only have their wings preserved in the fossils," said Wang He, who unearthed the fossil. "their bodies, unlike the wings, were easily decomposed or eaten by other creatures."