Meet Your New Nightmare: Ancient Spider With A Tail Preserved in Amber

Dead Things iconDead Things
By Gemma Tarlach
Feb 5, 2018 9:00 PMDec 20, 2019 9:31 PM
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The Cretaceous spider Chimerarachne yingi, found preserved in amber, lived about 100 million years ago and had some unusual features, including a long, whiplike tail. (Credit: University of Kansas/KU News Service)

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There's a new kid in town — in Creepycrawly Town, to be exact. But there's much more to this leggy fella than nightmarishly good looks.

A pair of papers out today detail how this 100-million-year-old discovery, preserved in amber, fits into the spider evolution story...and the ways it doesn't. Known from four specimens, the ancient arachnid's formal name is Chimerarachne yingi. Its genus name, from the mythic Greek Chimera, is a nod to its unusual mix of features.

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