Wednesday, March 01, 2006
Amber reveals ecology of 30 million year old spiders
"Scientists at The University of Manchester and the Manchester Metropolitan University have carried out the first comparative scientific study of ancient spiders trapped in amber more than 30 millions years ago.
The study of fossilised spiders from the Baltic (Poland) and the Dominican (Caribbean) regions has revealed new insights into the ecologies of spiders dating back to the Cenozoic period.
It is the first time ancient spiders from different parts of the world have been compared on such a large scale. 671 species of spiders were compared in the study which is published in the March issue of the Royal Society's Journal Biology Letters."
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Featured book: George Poinar's "Lebanese Amber: The Oldest Insect Ecosystem in Fossilized Resin" (Amazon UK | US)
Books on Amber Fossils from the Science and Evolution Bookshop: UK | US
technorati tags: ancient, spiders, amber, poland, caribbean, species, royal+society, biology
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