Now, some 50 years later, scientists are meticulously digging through and analyzing each piece. Among their finds so far is a specimen of pygmy locust that lived 18 to 20 million years ago. It represents a transitional stage in this insect's evolution since earlier versions of the grasshopper had wings, while modern versions do not. The specimen contained in the amber sported what appear to be vestigial wings -- remnant structures that had already lost their main function.
"Grasshoppers are very rare in amber and this specimen is extraordinarily well-preserved," said Sam Heads, a paleontologist at the Illinois Natural History Survey, in a press release.
Heads named the new pygmy locust Electrotettix attenboroughi, the genus name is a combination of electrum (Latin from Greek, meaning "amber") and tettix (Greek, meaning "grasshopper"). The species is named for Sir David Attenborough, a British naturalist and filmmaker. Attenborough was interviewed about the newly named species in an interview by INHS.
"I'm very tickled pink," Attenborough said in a video about the new species' name. "It shows you that that family has been evolving 30 million years ago or wherever you date it, it had wings and today, all the members of the family don't."
The discovery is reported in the journal ZooKeys.
Among the other specimens Heads and lab technician Jared Thomas have found are fungus gnats, mosquitoes, spiders, a few mammal hairs, stingless bees and flowers. And they've only just begun -- so far they've analyzed less than 1 percent of the massive collection. As Thomas said, "We're looking through even the tiniest of pieces. There are tiny insects that could be hidden there, so we don’t want to miss anything."
Read more at Discovery News
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