Baltic Amber (Velten collection) (Eocene of Russian Federation)

Where: Kaliningrad, Russian Federation (54.9° N, 19.9° E: paleocoordinates 53.9° N, 15.2° E)

• coordinate estimated from map

• local area-level geographic resolution

When: Priabonian (38.0 - 33.9 Ma)

• According to Aleksandrova and Zaporozhets (2008), the higher parts of the Prussian Formation (including the Blaue Erde or Blue Earth) belong to the Charlesdowniea clathrata angulosa dinocyst Zone. Based on its index species, this zone is concurrent to Zone W13 established in the Parisian basin (Châteauneuf and Gruas-Cavagnetto 1978), where it is correlated with nannoplankton zones NP18–NP21 (Powell, 1992) of the Priabonian. In the Paleogene zonation of northwestern Europe, the first occurrence of Thalassiphora fenestrata is designated at the base of the dinocyst Subzone D12b (36.20 +/- 0.1 Ma), which is correlated with zones NP18 (terminal part)–NP20 of the Priabonian (Luterbacher et al., 2004).

Environment/lithology: terrestrial; amber

Size class: mesofossils

Preservation: amber

Collection methods: Repository: private collection of Jurgen Velten

Primary reference: M. S. Engel. 2001. A monograph of the Baltic amber bees and evolution of the Apoidea (Hymenoptera). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 259:1-192 [M. Clapham/A. Noshirvan]more details

Purpose of describing collection: taxonomic analysis

PaleoDB collection 123773: authorized by Matthew Clapham, entered by Arram Noshirvan on 28.01.2012, edited by Matthew Clapham

Creative Commons license: CC BY (attribution)

Taxonomic list

Arachnida
 Araneae - Linyphiidae
Succiphantes velteni11 Wunderlich 2004 money spider/sheet weaver
coll. J. Velten in Idstein
 Araneae - Theridiidae
Praetereuryopis phoroncidoides13 Wunderlich 2008 cobweb spider
coll. J. Velten in Idstein
 Araneae - Pisauridae
Pisauridae indet.12 Simon 1890 spider
 Araneae - Dipluridae
? Dipluridae "indet. 3"10 Simon 1889 funnel-web tarantula
coll. J. Velten in Idstein
Insecta
 Diptera - Diopsidae
Prosphyracephala succini4 Loew 1873 stalk-eyed fly
 Hemiptera - Ortheziidae
Arctorthezia sp.8 Cockerell 1912 ensign scale insect
Specimen number not stated
 Hemiptera - Piesmatidae
Heissiana serafini7 Popov 2001 ash grey leaf bug
HP1
 Hemiptera - Reduviidae
Proptilocerus dolosus2 Wasmann 1932 assassin bug
coll. J. Velten in Idstein
 Phasmatodea - Archipseudophasmatidae
Archipseudophasmatidae "subfamily 2"14 Zompro 2001 stick insect
No. 3, 5
Archipseudophasmatinae indet.14 Zompro 2001 stick insect
No. 4, unnumbered
Archipseudophasma sp.14 Zompro 2001 stick insect
Archipseudophasma phoenix15 Zompro 2001 stick insect
coll. J. Velten in Idstein
Balticophasma sp.14 Zompro 2001 stick insect
No. 2
 Hymenoptera - Megachilidae
Ctenoplectrella viridiceps Cockerell 1909 mason bee
(CJVG)
 Hymenoptera - Apidae
"Protobombus hirsutus" = Protobombus (Protobombus) hirsutus
"Protobombus hirsutus" = Protobombus (Protobombus) hirsutus Cockerell 1908 bee
(CJVG)
 Hymenoptera - Dryinidae
 Hymenoptera - Megalyridae
Prodinapsis minor6 Brues 1933 wasp
JVC-282, 294
Prodinapsis succinalis6 Brues 1923 wasp
JVC-248, JVC-307
 Hymenoptera - Ibaliidae
Ibalia (Ibalia) electra n. sp.1 Engel and Liu 2012 wasp
 Coleoptera - Brachypsectridae
Brachypsectridae indet.3 LeConte and Horn 1883 Texas beetle
Velten 12
 Megaloptera - Sialidae
"Sialis (Protosialis) voigti" = Sialis voigti9
"Sialis (Protosialis) voigti" = Sialis voigti9 Wichard and Engel 2006 alderfly