Last week brought news of fossilized tree resin whose ancient entombed termites suggest insects' longstanding awareness of social class.
Now a separate bit of amber has revealed another ancient treasure, this time a new plant species belonging to the genus Strychnos, which includes plants known for producing the lethal poison strychnine.
The discovery of the species, dubbed Strychnos electri by Rutgers University botany Professor Lena Struwe, can be traced to two flowers encased in amber for at least 15 million years. Struwe named the species in honor of the flowers' amber hideout (elektron is Greek for amber).
The flowers came to Struwe's attention via entomologist George Poinar, who has for years been studying a trove of amber samples collected during a 1986 trip to a Dominican Republic amber mine.
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