Scientists Discover 356 Animal Inclusions Trapped In Opaque Amber 100 Million Years Old

Science Daily ^ | 4-1-2008 | European Synchrotron Radiation Facility.

[blam]

Scientists Discover 356 Animal Inclusions Trapped In Opaque Amber 100 Million Years Old

Examples of virtual 3D extraction of organisms embedded in opaque amber: a) Gastropod Ellobiidae; b) Myriapod Polyxenidae; c) Arachnid; d) Conifer branch (Glenrosa); e) Isopod crustacean Ligia; f) Insect hymenopteran Falciformicidae. (Credit: M. Lak, P. Tafforeau, D. Néraudeau (ESRF Grenoble and UMR CNRS 6118 Rennes))

ScienceDaily (Apr. 1, 2008) — Paleontologists from the University of Rennes (France) and the ESRF have found the presence of 356 animal inclusions in completely opaque amber from mid-Cretaceous sites of Charentes (France). The team used the X-rays of the European light source to image two kilogrammes of the fossil tree resin with a technique that allows rapid survey of large amounts of opaque amber. This is the only known method to discover inclusions in detail in fully opaque amber.

Opaque amber has always been a challenge for paleontologists. Researchers cannot study it because the naked eye cannot visualize the presence of any fossil inclusion inside. In the Cretaceous sites like those in Charentes, there is up to 80% of opaque amber. It is like trying to find, in complete blindness, something that may or may not be there.

However, the paleontologists Malvina Lak, her colleagues from the University of Rennes and the ESRF paleontologist Paul Tafforeau, together with the National Museum of Natural History of Paris, have applied to opaque amber a synchrotron X-ray imaging technique known as propagation phase contrast microradiography. It sheds light on the interior of this dark amber, which resembles a stone to the human eye. “Researchers have tried to study this kind of amber for many years with little or no success. This is the first time that we can actually discover and study the fossils it contains”, says Paul Tafforeau.

The scientists imaged 640 pieces of amber from the Charentes region in southwestern France. They discovered 356 fossil animals, going from wasps and flies, to ants or even spiders and acarians. The team was able to identify the family of 53% of the inclusions.

Most of the organisms discovered are tiny. For example, one of the discovered acarians measures 0.8 mm and a fossil wasp is only 4 mm. “The small size of the organisms is probably due to the fact that bigger animals would be able to escape from the resin before getting stuck, whereas little ones would be captured more easily”, explains Malvina Lak.

Water to see tiny fossils better

The surface features of amber pieces, like cracks, stand out more in the images than the fossil organisms in the interior when using synchrotron radiation. In order to solve this problem, scientists soaked the amber pieces in water before the experiment. Because water and amber have very similar densities, immersion made the outlines of the amber pieces and the cracks almost invisible. At the same time, it increased overall inclusion visibility, leading to better detection and characterization of the fossils.

Classification of species

Once discovered on the radiographs, some of the organisms were imaged in three dimensions and virtually extracted from the resin. The high quality of these 3D reconstructions enables paleontologists to precisely study and describe the organisms. The success of this experiment shows the high value of the ESRF for the study of fossils. “Opaque amber hosts many aspects of past life on our planet that are still unknown, and the use of third generation synchrotron sources will continue to play an important role in unveiling them”, asserts Malvina Lak.

Reference: M. Lak, D. Néraudeau, A. Nel, P. Cloetens, V. Perrichot and P. Tafforeau, Phase Contrast X-ray Synchrotron Imaging: Opening Access to Fossil Inclusions in Opaque Amber, Microscopy and Microanalysis, Forthcoming article doi:10.1017/S1431927608080264.

Adapted from materials provided by European Synchrotron Radiation Facility.

[blam]

GGG Ping.

[Gaffer]

Whoa oh! Isn’t this how Jurraisic Park started out?

[Puppage]

[wolfcreek]

I see 100 million year old bugs and such don’t look a lot different from todays.

[CarrotAndStick]

Yes. Small insects thrive well. Cockroaches are one of the creatures whose species has least altered with time.

And then we have “living fossils” like coelacanths.

[Jedidah]

Speaking of Jurassic Park:

---

http://aberystwyth-online.blogspot.com/2008/04/stonehenge-excavation-reveals-jurassic.html

Stonehenge Excavation Reveals Jurassic Park Secret
Posted by Aberystwyth at Tuesday, April 01, 2008

As excavation gets on the way at Stonehendge, archaeologists make a startling discovery.

The Bluestone Project was to help archaeologists enhance their knowledge of how these massive stones (82 in number) from south-west Wales travelled the 300 miles and to help date their arrival in Salisbury Plain, Wiltshire.

Archaeologists whilst excavating today found the skeleton of an animal of massive proportions, the site team of specialists have refused to committee themselves as to what this animal might be. But one individual who refused to be named said it resembled a Shantungosaurus.

Shantungosaurus believed to be extinct for over 65 million years, will make archaeologists rethink the date of Stonehenge. With its purpose shrouded in mystery, the modern world has only been able to speculate about why – and when – Stonehenge was created.

For many years it was believed to take wooden walkways and up to 500 men, with another 100 in front laying rollers to moved these stones weighing up to four tonnes each, 300 miles from the hills of Wales. Some believe the stone circle to have healing properties, while others believe it to be a seasonal calendar dating back to 3,100 BC, with sun appearing in the “gateway” on the solstice – Midsummer’s Day.

Wales known for its beauty and remoteness could hold the key to this fascinating discovery. Two years ago a farm labourer while digging for shale, hardcore in the Preseli Hills, Pembrokeshire found the jaw bone belonging to a Shantungosaurus.

This recent discovery at Stonehenge opens the debate as to when Shantungosaurus last walked on the British Isles, whether they coexisted and were domesticated by our predecessors with the possibility that Stonehenge was in fact an early coral or cage for these impressive animals.

Bones from the site have been sent to Aberystwyth University for carbon dating, while the results are eagerly awaited by both archaeologists and paleobiologists, officials at English Heritage have cordoned off the site, with extra police drafted in to protect the monument as the worlds media descends on this well known landmark, excavations continue.

---

(Check the date.)

[patton]

Jerk. I was going, WTFO?

[wolfcreek]

I imagine being small would have it's advantages during catastrophic events. Being able to scurry into the ground or under a rock might save your life. Cockroaches supposedly can survive a nuclear war.

“The meek shall inherit the Earth”

Were there any small mammals such as mice around during this period?

[Jedidah]

Gotcha. :-)

[patton]

Kuddos to you, you did.

[SunkenCiv]

· join list or digest · view topics · view or post blog · bookmark · post a topic ·
	Gods Graves Glyphs	Thanks Blam. Zelazny ping. To all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list. GGG managers are Blam, StayAt HomeMother, and Ernest_at_the_Beach
· Google · Archaeologica · ArchaeoBlog · Archaeology magazine · Biblical Archaeology Society · · Mirabilis · Texas AM Anthropology News · Yahoo Anthro & Archaeo · · History or Science & Nature Podcasts · Excerpt, or Link only? · cgk's list of ping lists ·

[Salamander]

“I imagine being small would have it’s advantages during catastrophic events. Being able to scurry into the ground or under a rock might save your life.”

It’s always worked for me.

[Monkey Face]

I prefer my amber with no crunchy things, thanks just the same.

(Talk about Crispy Critters...)

[aruanan]

In the Cretaceous sites like those in Charentes, there is up to 80% of opaque amber.

Was this translated from French by Babelfish? "In the Cretaceous sites like those in Charentes, up to 80% of the amber is opaque." There's a lot of opaque amber in the Dominican Republic. Much of it has that same green/purple/brown color of heavy oil.

[aruanan]

“Opaque amber hosts many aspects of past life on our planet that are still unknown, and the use of third generation synchrotron sources will continue to play an important role in unveiling them”, asserts Malvina Lak.

This is a funny one!

[AFPhys]

I am looking forward with excitement, fear, and trepidation to someday people actually attempting DNA reconstruction of these ancient animals. I now believe it is in our almost immediate future, not merely a Jurassic Park fantasy.

[To Hell With Poverty]

LOL, I was thinking “Shantungosaurus...did it have a soft sheen and nubby texture?”

[Fichori]

Let me guess...
They knew the age of the amber because it had 100 Million year old bugs in it.

And they knew the age of the bugs, because they were in 100 Million year old amber.

Its a good thing those ‘scientists’ are always one step behind them selves, because if they weren’t, their minds would be running is some pretty small circles.

[Gaffer]

The real nightmare is that someday someone would bring back Hillary, Bill or one of the other Demosaurii.