From ancient antagonistic arachnids … to the feathered tails of dinosaurs … Here are 13 of the most ancient animals preserved in amber



#13 Ant vs Wasp … Forever
Some amber unearthed in Myanmar in 2012 revealed an epic struggle frozen in time for upwards of 100 million years (possibly more). A spider was in the midst of attacking a wasp that had become tangled in its web … the only such fossil found thus far to depict such an arachnid attack. It would have been the wasp’s worst nightmare to see the spider approaching it … and since the tree resin covered and captured them both, the nightmare never ended.














#12 Immortal Combat
Two insects found in an exquisite piece of amber kind of serve to epitomize the idea of ant warfare. Two species of ants were revealed to have been locked in combat for over 100 million years. According to researchers, the minute critters were so focused on waging war on one another that they just didn’t notice when tree resin was covering them … which of course fossilized over time. Since the critters’ jaws were still locked together, it’s possible that the two ants were fighting over a food source … or caught up in the midst of a nest being raided. Researchers say that the specimen located in Myanmar might provide the clearest evidence to date regarding insects displaying advanced social behaviors … although in this case, maybe it would be ‘antisocial behaviors’.