daves64 Posted April 18, 2019 Share Posted April 18, 2019 Found a small bug in some Indonesian amber I was working. It's maybe 2 mm in length, but not sure. It's at a bad angle & I would end up with a tiny little piece of amber trying to get a better view from other angles. Since the Indonesian amber isn't heat treated like Baltic amber, it's a bit darker & isn't as clear, but I did my best. I thought at first it was a mosquito, but not anymore. Not sure what it is, but I'm hoping someone might have an idea. I do have to admit though.. the amber does show some interesting flow patterns sometimes. I can't really shave the amber down any more for fear of losing wing on one side & legs on the other & the head on a third, so these pics are going to have to do. Accomplishing the impossible means only that the boss will add it to your regular duties. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ynot Posted April 18, 2019 Share Posted April 18, 2019 Wasp? Darwin said: " Man sprang from monkeys." Will Rogers said: " Some of them didn't spring far enough." My Fossil collection - My Mineral collection My favorite thread on TFF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daves64 Posted April 18, 2019 Author Share Posted April 18, 2019 14 minutes ago, ynot said: Wasp? Dunno.. if it is, it's an itty bitty one. Accomplishing the impossible means only that the boss will add it to your regular duties. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daves64 Posted April 18, 2019 Author Share Posted April 18, 2019 Looks like my buggy lil friend may be a midge. Anybody got a DNA lab? Maybe we can make some dinos... Accomplishing the impossible means only that the boss will add it to your regular duties. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I_gotta_rock Posted April 19, 2019 Share Posted April 19, 2019 I don't know how helpful they'd be given that the amber blurs the details, but you might want to try bugguide.net. They should at least be able to give you an Order. I refuse to give up my childish wonder at the world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gieserguy Posted April 19, 2019 Share Posted April 19, 2019 For a start, it looks like a Dipteran based on antennae and general appearance. I would probably rule out wasp because it doesn't fit the general shape of a wasp. That being said, it is hard to tell if it is or isn't because of clarity, which I totally understand- tiny insects in amber are really hard to photograph. However, some things that you could look for to determine if it is or isn't a wasp/other Hymenopteran is to check for the number of wings. Dipterans have two and Hymenopterans have 4! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daves64 Posted April 19, 2019 Author Share Posted April 19, 2019 Near as I can tell, it has 2 wings. Accomplishing the impossible means only that the boss will add it to your regular duties. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FossilDAWG Posted April 19, 2019 Share Posted April 19, 2019 I doubt it is a hymenopteran as they have a narrow pedicel ("waist") between the thorax and posterior abdomen, which is not present in your fossil. If you can get a photo that shows the veins in the wings (or at least one wing) I can ask some people here. However the current photos are too fuzzy for a decent ID. Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daves64 Posted April 19, 2019 Author Share Posted April 19, 2019 8 hours ago, FossilDAWG said: If you can get a photo that shows the veins in the wings (or at least one wing) I can ask some people here. Don Ok, here's the best I can get. I removed 3/4 inch of material from the right end & carefully worked it down with diamond files & wet/dry sandpaper finishing with micron graded bonded sanding sheets designed for plastics. Ended with an equivalent 14000 grit sheet. then I used both an external LED & a small black light flash light to get these images with my Dino-lite. 1st is 190 x & the 2nd is 200 x Hope they help. The veins are faint, but they do show. 1 Accomplishing the impossible means only that the boss will add it to your regular duties. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gieserguy Posted April 19, 2019 Share Posted April 19, 2019 I'm really curious what those little lobe-things are below the wings? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daves64 Posted April 19, 2019 Author Share Posted April 19, 2019 I think those are just the legs on the other side viewed at a slightly different angle. Accomplishing the impossible means only that the boss will add it to your regular duties. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sagacious Posted April 21, 2019 Share Posted April 21, 2019 On 4/19/2019 at 11:10 AM, gieserguy said: I'm really curious what those little lobe-things are below the wings? Those are halteres, which place this insect securely in the order Diptera. Your photos are very good, but focus stacking or another image enhancing technique may help to get sharper photos to assist with identification. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.thumb.jpg.5fd32772a8e7b7a03acd9ad914fcf9e9.jpg)
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now