Ancient Tree Frog in an Amber Grave!
posted in Amazing Facts, Animal Species, Archaeology |
A miner who comes from Mexico’s Chiapas state has made a find of a lifetime—a small tree frog that got preserved in amber which is 25 million years old. A block of amber, or fossilized tree resin, that contained the 0.4-inch (1-centimeter) frog was brought out in 2005 and sold to a private collector.
The specimen appears to belong to the genus Craugastor, said Gerardo Carbot, of the Chiapas Natural History and Ecology Institute, who has been studying the find. This genus includes many modern frogs that are native to Central America.
The frog’s age has not yet to be authenticated. It was recovered from earthen deposits that can be dated back to 25 million years. Now Carbot hopes to make “Jurassic Park” a reality by drilling a small hole into the amber and attempting to extract DNA from this specimen.