Bill Posted May 29, 2008 Share Posted May 29, 2008 A few years back I was into collecting insect remains from the Lower Cretaceous, Wealden formations of Sussex and Surrey, England. I have not had most of them id'd yet but hope to soon. If anyone is interested I will start an album of them when id'd. In the meantime I am rather chuffed with this one. It is in the Booth Museum of Natural History in Hove, Sussex, England. Will get a pic next time I'm there. I collected it. Palaeontological Journal. Vol. 37 #2 2003 Family Athericidae Stuckenberg, 1973 Genus Athericites Mostovski, Jarzembowski et Coram, gen. nov. Ty p e s p e c i e s. A. gordoni sp. nov. D i a g n o s i s. R2+3 and R1 vein tips very close. Vein R4 terminated before wing apex. Basal cells comparatively short, their distal ends not extending as far as the level of Sc termination. Vein M1 usually weakly arched basally. Fourth posterior cell narrowed distally; veins M3 and M4 convergent. Anal cell closed or very narrowly opened. Stigma very dark, well developed beneath vein R1. S p e c i e s c o m p o s i t i o n. Five new species. KOF, Bill. Welcome to the forum, all new members www.ukfossils check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted May 29, 2008 Share Posted May 29, 2008 You found a HOLOTYPE! Congratulations! That's better than a twitcher documenting a first continental record! I'd personally love to see a pic; I'm not a "bug man", but I do have an accidental collection (associations with bird tracks and/or feathers). After all, insects are bird food! "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted May 29, 2008 Author Share Posted May 29, 2008 Hi Chas. Yeah it was a buzz when I found out, through asking. It was collected and donated Years ago. Described in 2003. I found out Feb 2008. Also a cockroach gonna be named after me at some point. I have added a bit to the post in which it also says "gen. nov" which I take to mean new genus, is that correct. KOF, Bill. Welcome to the forum, all new members www.ukfossils check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted May 29, 2008 Share Posted May 29, 2008 A quick on-line search says that Athericidae are "watersnipe flies", with one extant genus, exclusively N. American. (Now you've got me searching insect taxonomy)! "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted May 29, 2008 Author Share Posted May 29, 2008 Yes, this was a biting Snipefly. KOF, Bill. Welcome to the forum, all new members www.ukfossils check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
non-remanié Posted May 29, 2008 Share Posted May 29, 2008 Hi Chas.Yeah it was a buzz when I found out, through asking. It was collected and donated Years ago. Described in 2003. I found out Feb 2008. Also a cockroach gonna be named after me at some point. I have added a bit to the post in which it also says "gen. nov" which I take to mean new genus, is that correct. Great finds congrats! It should be a dream for all of us as collectors to have a new species named after us. yes gen. nov. = genus novum = new genus ---Wie Wasser schleift den Stein, wir steigen und fallen--- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NJ Mary Ann Posted May 29, 2008 Share Posted May 29, 2008 Wow, you have a right to be proud!!! Congrats on such a nice find! -Mary Ann ********* "There is nothing like geology; the pleasure of the first day's partridge shooting or first day's hunting cannot be compared to finding a fine group of fossil bones, which tell their story of former times with almost a living tongue." Charles Darwin, letter to his sister Catherine, 1834 ********* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roz Posted May 30, 2008 Share Posted May 30, 2008 Pretty dang cool! Welcome to the forum! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Archimedes Posted May 30, 2008 Share Posted May 30, 2008 Real Nice Please start an album of your cretaceous insects What I Like most about this forum is the diversity of fossils exhibited Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gatorman Posted May 30, 2008 Share Posted May 30, 2008 Wow thats pretty cool! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RJB Posted May 30, 2008 Share Posted May 30, 2008 Hey Bill, seems like I remember something about someone finding a rare insect wing and posted it on the UK forum a couple of years back. Is this the same one? RB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted May 30, 2008 Author Share Posted May 30, 2008 Hi RB, I posted mine on there in Feb this year. I have created some albums for my wings. KOF, Bill. Welcome to the forum, all new members www.ukfossils check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nicholas Posted May 30, 2008 Share Posted May 30, 2008 Great photos, and a great collection. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted May 30, 2008 Author Share Posted May 30, 2008 Cheers All, Anyone that is interested, keep checking as I have more wings to add to more albums. KOF, Bill. Welcome to the forum, all new members www.ukfossils check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xiphactinus Posted May 30, 2008 Share Posted May 30, 2008 I found a new genus and species of Pennsylvanian insect when I was in college. Frank Carpenter of Harvard (Mr. Fossil Insect) studied it and named it after me....Lycodus garretti (my last name latinized) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted May 30, 2008 Author Share Posted May 30, 2008 Nice one. Congratulations. That is one big insect wing at 110mm. KOF, Bill. Welcome to the forum, all new members www.ukfossils check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted May 30, 2008 Share Posted May 30, 2008 I'm not a "bug man", but I do have an accidental collection (associations with bird tracks and/or feathers). After all, insects are bird food! Here are two that I happen to have photos of (both Green River Eocene): one with a mayfly, and one with a snout beetle and a fly. "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted May 31, 2008 Author Share Posted May 31, 2008 Very nice. I haven't managed to find a complete insect yet. KOF, Bill. Welcome to the forum, all new members www.ukfossils check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted May 31, 2008 Share Posted May 31, 2008 I haven't managed to find a complete insect yet. From the Green River Eocene, it's no great trick (I think Stevie Wonder could find them there). How common are they in the deposits you're working? For good, complete Lower Cretaceous insects the easy way, don't you have to go to Montsec, Spain, or the Santana Fm. in Brazil? "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Posted May 31, 2008 Author Share Posted May 31, 2008 They were not that common. The site, a clay pit, had the odd sandstone lens which these came from. Unfortunately it is now a landfill site. On a society fieldtrip one of the older members discarded a pair of Dragonfly wings which the leader, now Dr Andrew Ross, NHM, London, recovered. I used to help Andrew inspect the remains after each trip and between us we located the piece of rock the wings came from. On taking it back to the Booth Museum, Hove, Sussex, England, Andrew managed to prep the complete, new sp. Dragonfly from it. Dr Ed Jarzembowski, Maidstone Museum, Kent, England, has found a good number of complete specimens from a pit nearby, in the past. 1 KOF, Bill. Welcome to the forum, all new members www.ukfossils check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted May 31, 2008 Share Posted May 31, 2008 That's a great story! Why in the world did they discard the wings? Maybe they didn't realize what they had? In any case, perseverance paid off royally! "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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