Fluorescent spider fossil (IMAGE)

University of Kansas

Fluorescent spider fossil

Caption

Fossilized spider from the Aix-en-Provence Formation in France seen in hand sample overlain with fluorescent microscopy image of the same fossil. Under normal lighting the spider fossil is hard to differentiate from the surrounding rock matrix, but when the fossil is excited by UV-illumination its chemical composition causes it to autofluoresce brightly, revealing additional details of its preservation.

Credit

Olcott et al

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