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Big Spider In Baltic Amber


Napoleon North

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Spider identification usually requires a close-up photo of the head showing fine details such as the pedipalps.

In any case, the expert on spiders in amber is Dr. David Penney in the United Kingdom. You can email him at his publishing company:

books@siriscientificpress.co.uk

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WOW!

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:popcorn: John

I had a friend once, but the wheels fell off. Sad, very sad. - Nightwing

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  • 3 weeks later...

It looks to have 8 legs, which puts it in the category of arachnids, and I also see what appears to be a fang protruding behind the crook in the front legs. I'm not an expert, but I believe that is a spider. Are there or were there "pseudo spiders"?

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Looks like it could be in the Myglamoph family ( trapdoor spiders ) or in the "Lycosid" family ( wolf spiders )

But in all honesty without seeing it's Setae ( hairs ) under a scope, you will never get a 100% ID on Genus or species.

I would organize to have it looked at by someone who's versed on Paleo-arachnology at a museum

Cheers

Jace ( Myglamorph/Theraphosidea breeder /never ending research student. )

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sheesh mate he's obviously trying to rear up and eat something.... best spider in amber that i have ever seen!

I'm CRAZY about amber fossils and just as CRAZY in general.

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Well i can tell you with certainty that it's a Male spider, You can see his palpal bulbs with spurs intact!

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Well i can tell you with certainty that it's a Male spider, You can see his palpal bulbs with spurs intact!

Thank you for this information, I don't know much about this area, it is about 5 mm, do you think it's a wolf spider?

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Thank you for this information, I don't know much about this area, it is about 5 mm, do you think it's a wolf spider?

It's hard to say as i don't know the age of the specimen, Also for a Lycosid the prosoma should have a much higher elevation at the front to support their large nocturnal eyes, I'd lean more towards a Primitive species of theraphosid/ Mygalomorph ( Tarantula / trapdoor ) Though i would need a close up detailed shot of the chelicerae from the front showing the angle of the fangs. From top down.

" Primative spiders "Theraphosids/Mygalomorphs will have fangs in line like this http://s.hswstatic.com/gif/deadliest-spider-2.jpg

"New world spiders" will have fangs more like pincers facing downward. like this http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3598/3350170425_42922acd2d.jpg

"" These images are NOT mine, all credit goes to their respective photographers.""

Jace.

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Thank you very much for infos and pictures Jace, i will try to make other pics to show that if the amber permit it, it's baltic amber about 55/40 My. Do you think it's possible to say that she was attacking at the moment she was trapped ?

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... Do you think it's possible to say that she was attacking at the moment she was trapped ?

I think that would be a fairly fanciful interpretation. More likely that it was struggling because it got stuck in fresh resin; it could have taken quite a long time to become completely buried in it.

"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!

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I think that would be a fairly fanciful interpretation. More likely that it was struggling because it got stuck in fresh resin; it could have taken quite a long time to become completely buried in it.

She was surely fighting against the resin. :)

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If you send me an IM i'll give you my email and if you send me the high quality shots i can send them to an Arachnologist i know who's one of, if not the leading world expert on spiders. Dr Robert Raven. If anyone can give us an idea of species it's him lol

I can't give out his email address but i can forward things to him for you.

Cheers.

Jace.

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That's very nice from you, i will have to buy a better light system to take better pictures, as often with amber, the material is externally irregular with deformations and more opaque areas inside, it's too difficult to shot like that, maybe next month or later, i will contact you when i will be able to do it ;)

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That's very nice from you, i will have to buy a better light system to take better pictures, as often with amber, the material is externally irregular with deformations and more opaque areas inside, it's too difficult to shot like that, maybe next month or later, i will contact you when i will be able to do it ;)

that is definitely a frustration with amber... it can bend light away from what you want to see.

I'm CRAZY about amber fossils and just as CRAZY in general.

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that is definitely a frustration with amber... it can bend light away from what you want to see.

Yes, it's often a problem, i will try later with a polarizing filter. Anyway i think that i can have better results with better settings on my camera.

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