Lecture on inclusions

Head of the Expositional and Research Department of the Amber Museum Anna Smirnova will speak to the topic "Inclusions in Amber and Specific Features of Their Burial".

There will be told both about the rarest inclusions, such as hair of lemurs, gnawing animals, feathers, and about those of arachnids and insects, that are rather often found in amber.

One of the most spread inhabitants of the "amber" forest were lizards – vertebrate animals with bodies from 3 to 15 cm long. There is a sample with this remarkable reptile in the Amber Museum's permanent exposition.

Warm climate with slight daily and seasonal fluctuations of temperature was rather welcoming. In the forest cover and under the bark of decaying trees lizards found mass gatherings of invertebrates that they fed on. Mostly, lizards fed on slow-moving invertebrates as centipedes, caterpillars, bugs. wood louses, termites, spiders, etc. Only in exceptional cases they preyed on fast-moving or winged insects: mosquitos, ants, and dragonflies.

Despite the wide distribution of these reptiles, a lizard in amber is an extremely rare phenomenon. The reason is that the resin was an effective trap only for small organisms.

Contacting with fresh resin caused lizard  a stress reaction – spontaneous tail dropping. The sample exhibited in the Amber Museum has its tail, which testifies to the fact that the lizard got into resin after its death.

The lecture starts at 16.00.

Students, young researchers and scientists, and everyone interested in the topic of amber inclusions are invited.

Ticket price – 200 rubles, or by the ticket to the permanent exposition.

Inquiries 53-82-19.