A new soldier fly (Diptera, Stratiomyidae) from the Lower Cretaceous of Liaoning Province, northeast China

A new genus and species of Stratiomyidae, Gigantoberis liaoningensis, is described from the Lower Cretaceous of western Liaoning Province based on a well-preserved, complete specimen. This is the first fossil record of a soldier fly so far described from China. It was armed with a specialized mouth part (proboscis and labella) and its huge body and short wings imply that it was a pollen eater and a poor flier.