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Skin molt in amber?


daves64

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In one of the pieces of Burmite amber I bought from @holdinghistory recently, I found what I think may be molted skin from something. Reptile, insect or worm, I have no clue. Measures 1 cm long by 5 mm at the widest. Pics 1 - 4 show the texture at 200 x. 5 & 6 show the entire piece at 20 x. Any ideas?

1.jpg

2.jpg

3.jpg

4.jpg

5.jpg

6.jpg

Accomplishing the impossible means only that the boss will add it to your regular duties.

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I’m thinking you may be right with a molt. In picture #1 it looks like the eye covering on the right side. But from what I’m not sure. I suspect some kind of worm/leech but I could easily be wrong. He really has some nice stuff doesn’t he? I got a piece of (Suspected) reptile skin in one of mine.

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57 minutes ago, Randyw said:

piece of (Suspected) reptile skin

You mean it doesn't look like this ?

Oh, and, worms molt ?

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Nope it doesn’t. And it’s not exactly a molt some organisms seem to just have the skin preserved in the amber. I haven’t been able to find out why. Wether the insides rotted out before enclosed in the amber or they just become translucent In the amber or what I couldn’t say. But you’ll find just the outsides of something’s in perfect shape and complete but see through....

  • I found this Informative 1
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My initial reaction was to think of the foxglove flower that caught my attention the other day.

Pulled one from the vegetable garden before it went to seed. :)

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14 hours ago, Randyw said:

An example of a complete but see through specimen 

27087127-E464-4B95-9129-F7259559CAD1.jpeg

I've got one bug that makes this one look mostly opaque, not sure what it is, other than the ghost of a bug. I'll have to organize the pics & post them. Had to get creative to take the pics to show any real detail. :oO:

Accomplishing the impossible means only that the boss will add it to your regular duties.

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  • 1 year later...

This looks like a diptera larvae (maggot) to me as well. The little black triangles are denticles and are found in bands on the ventral surface to provide traction to the crawling larvae. I have seen many larvae in burmite and many look deflated as this one. I don't know about all diptera species, but larvae cuticles become the pupae so it probably isn't a molt. Hope this helps a year later.

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