Tale of the Headless Dragonfly: Ancient Struggle, Preserved in Amber
ScienceDaily (Oct. 27, 2010) — In a short, violent battle that could have happened somewhere this afternoon, the lizard made a fast lunge at the dragonfly, bit its head off and turned to run away. Lunch was served.
Headless dragonfly. This ancient species of dragonfly is seen largely intact in amber, missing only a few feet and its head - presumable in the mouth of the lizard seen fleeing at the left. (Credit: Photo by George Poinar)
But the battle didn't happen today, it happened about 100 million years ago, probably with dinosaurs strolling nearby. And the lizard didn't get away, it was trapped in the same oozing, sticky tree sap that also entombed the now-headless dragonfly for perpetuity.
This ancient struggle, preserved in the miracle of amber, was just described by researchers from Oregon State University inPaleodiversity, a professional journal. It announced the discovery of a new sub-family of dragonflies in the oldest specimen of this insect ever found in amber.
More importantly, the study and others like it continue to reveal the similarities of behaviors and ecosystems separated by many millions of years, said George Poinar, a professor emeritus at Oregon State University. Poinar is one of the world's leading experts on life forms found preserved in this semi-precious stone that acts as a natural embalming agent.
"Dragonflies are still eaten by small lizards every day, it's a routine predator/prey interaction," Poinar said. "This shows once again how behaviors of various life forms are retained over vast amounts of time, and continues to give us insights into the ecology of ancient ecosystems."
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DESTAQUE DESTE BLOGGER:
100 milhões de anos e, tanto o lagarto e a libélula continuaram com seus planos corporais inalterados. 100 MILHÕES DE ANOS DE ESTASE. Estase, segundo Stephen Jay Gould, são dados. Dados são evidências. Evidências, ora que se danem as evidências, o que vale é a teoria [Atribuído a Dobzhansky a um dos seus alunos na USP, mas nenhum dos vivos quer confirmar isso. Prof. Dr. Aldo Mellender de Araújo, UFRGS, pode lançar alguma luz neste sentido???]
Êta seleção natural preguiçosa e incompetente, sô!!!
