Extinct mayfly found in amber

Friday 11 September 1998 00:02 BST

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AN EXTINCT species of mayfly has achieved a form of immortality by becoming trapped for 25 million years in amber.

Andrew Ross, curator of fossil arthropods at the Natural History Museum in London, identified the mayfly after being sent the amber by an American collector who bought the specimen from Mexican indians.

"Mayflies are incredibly rare in amber [as] they only live a few hours," Dr Ross told the British Association.

Friday Review, page 11

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