Ancient bugs found in 50-million-year-old Indian amber

[Robert_S]

Ancient bugs found in 50-million-year-old Indian amber
By Katia Moskvitch Science reporter, BBC News

More than 700 new species of ancient insect have been discovered in 50-million-year-old amber.

The discoveries come from some 150kg of amber produced by an ancient rainforest in India.

Scientists say in the journal PNAS that many insects are related to species from far-away corners of the world.

This means that, despite millions of years in isolation in the ocean, the region was a lot more biologically diverse that previously believed.

The amber, dubbed Cambay amber, was found in lignite mines in the Cambay Shale of the Indian state of Gujarat.

Jes Rust from the University of Bonn in Germany led an international team of researchers from India, Germany and the US.

According to a predominant theory of continents' formation, at first there were only two so-called supercontinents on Earth. The one in the north was called Laurasia and the other one, located more towards the south, Gondwana.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

[Thinking Aloud]

(Digression on wording.)

According to a predominant theory of continents' formation, at first there were only two so-called supercontinents on Earth. The one in the north was called Laurasia and the other one, located more towards the south, Gondwana.

So when they say "a predominant theory" they're referring to the Theory of Plate Tectonics, are they? As opposed to the "theory of stuff made up to fit the flood myth", just in case saying "According to Plate Tectonics" offends someone? Very odd wording...

[FBM]

Remind me not to date Amber.

[Gawdzilla Sama]

Remind me not to date Amber again.

[Svartalf]

Remind me not to date Amber.

Yeah, she's too old and will never forgive you.

[leo-rcc]

Obviously a forgery, that amber can't be more than 10,000 years old.

[Ironclad]

Nice of the BBC to include a picture of crumbled brown rocks labelled, "amber looks like brown rocks". Useful information that.