Stunning amber butterflies hint at ancient origins
13:11 17 March 04

Butterflies may be far more ancient creatures than previously believed,
reveals a new study of fossil specimens exquisitely preserved in amber.

The oldest known butterflies fossilised in rocks suggest the winged insects
date back to about 40 or 50 million years ago. But evidence from the five
stunning amber specimens now suggests it is possible butterflies may have
even fluttered around the heads of dinosaurs, which were wiped out 65
million years ago.

The amber pieces come from the Dominican Republic and each contains a
perfectly preserved metalmark butterfly, which is now extinct. "It was just
incredible," says Robert Robbins, one of the researchers at the Smithsonian
Institution in Washington DC, US. "It's no different than if you took a
modern day butterfly and put it under a light microscope."

But it is Voltinia dramba's relationship to its closest living relative in
Mexico which gives vital clues to the evolution of butterflies.

Read the rest at NewScientist
http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99994789

Comment:
Interesting pictures accompany the article.

Posted by
Robert Karl Stonjek.
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