Ancient Harvestman Discovered in Amber Reveals Lost European Fauna

A new species of fossil harvestman, Balticolasma wunderlichi, has been identified from two 35-million-year-old amber specimens. This discovery marks the first fossil evidence of the Ortholasmatinae subfamily, a group whose modern relatives are now found only in distant parts of the world.

"The discovery of an ortholasmatine harvestman in European amber deposits surprised us... Evidently, 35 million years ago, during the Eocene epoch, these harvestmen were much more widely distributed across the Northern Hemisphere than they are today." — Lead author Christian Bartel

Discovery and Analysis

The fossils were found in two distinct locations: one in classic Baltic amber and another in Rovno amber from Ukraine. Researchers used light microscopy and computed tomography to create detailed 3D images of the specimens.

The scans revealed intricate physical characteristics, including ornate ridges on the back, lattice-like patterns on the head, an eye mound, mouthparts, and eight legs—with the second pair being notably longer. The Baltic amber specimen is male, while the one from Ukraine is female. This discovery brings the total number of harvestman species identified in both amber regions to six.

A Changed World

The fossils indicate these arachnids had a broader distribution across the Northern Hemisphere 35 million years ago. Today, relatives of this harvestman group are found only in East Asia, North America, and Central America. The species is now extinct in modern Europe.

During the warm, possibly subtropical Eocene period, the region between the Baltic and Black Seas hosted a very different fauna. The research team notes that additional fossil finds would be needed to fully reconstruct the history of the Ortholasmatinae subfamily.

"Baltic amber is known for its enormous diversity of fossils and repeatedly reveals species that no longer occur in Europe today. The fact that the new harvestman species was also found in Ukraine shows how similar the faunas of both regions were at that time." — Co-author Jason Dunlop

Publication

The research detailing the discovery of Balticolasma wunderlichi was published in the journal Acta Palaeontologica Polonica.