Natural History - Fly in Baltic Amber

Knightia alta specimen on a rectangular matrix. 1.03 kg, 19.8 cm



From Wyoming (Green River Formation), USA. From a Lincolnshire, UK, collection.

In southwest Wyoming (and parts of Colorado and Utah) in the Green River Formation are found some of the world's most outstanding specimens of fossil fish. The Green River system was composed of three lakes: Lake Ulinta, Lake Gosiute and Fossil Lake. These Eocene lakes lay in a series of intermountain basins formed by geological events that uplifted the Rocky Mountains during the early Tertiary time. The climate was much different from the desert-like climate of this area today. Both the fauna (crocodiles, alligators, boa constrictors and some subtropical fish families) and the flora (such as large palm trees) indicate a climate much like that found along the Gulf Coast today. Large amounts of ash found in the sediments indicate that volcanoes were particularly active at this time.

Three matrices with Ophiuroidea sp. specimens. 270 grams total, 79-85 mm



From El Kaid Errami, Tafilalt, Morocco, North Africa. From an old German collection.

With some serration and good enamel, from Carcharodontosaurus saharicus; repaired. 14.9 grams, 49 mm



From the Tegana formation of the Sahara Desert, Morocco, North Africa. Acquired during 1980s. From an old Lincolnshire, UK, collection.

The Carcharodontosaurus saharicus was one of the largest predators (larger than its distant North American T-Rex cousin) of all time and is also related to Allosaurus and the South American Giganotosaurus.