Asterids in Amber: "Electric" and Possibly Poisonous Fossil Flowers of the Dominican Republic

      The publication of an article in Nature Plants on 2/15/16, has resulted in some amusing autocorrect texts about this clade of flowering plants of Asteridae, (or asterids) which also includes coffee, potatoes, strychnine, and curare. Two newly discovered and very well-preserved fossil flowers (just less than 20 mm long) are believed to part of a new genus and species, Strychnos electri sp nov, which are of Tertiary age, possibly quite toxic, and exceptionally well-preserved in amber.

         The discovery of the fossils in the Dominican Republic 

by the lead author, George O. Poinar, Jr., in 1986, and subsequent study by Strychnos expert, Lena Struwe, has resulted in numerous articles citing the "asteroid" family or the genus and species name "Strychnos electricity." 

            The latter autocorrection is perhaps more forgiveable since the researchers named the new species after the Greek word for amber ("elektron"), the fossilized resin of trees. In around 600 B.C. Thales of Miletus writes about amber becoming charged by rubbing, describing static electricity.

        "The researchers had to date the flower by proxy by examining other life forms found in the amber cache, including the common single-celled organisms known as foraminifera and coccoliths. There are distinct evolutionary and population changes in foraminifera and coccoliths over time, and paleontologists often use these tiny animals to place fossils during specific geological periods."      

            The quote above from this article describes using microscopic foraminifera 

      and coccoliths (here in Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) view

to help date the Dominican Republic amber. However, those two marine fauna are less likely to be found near flowering land plants. It is more likely, though, on a small island nation to see microscopic marine fossils together with land fossils in one amber suite.

     Amber suite, sweet amber! (ever the sap). . .

Where do your thoughts resin-ate?

Steph