4.2" Fossil Waterstrider (Propygolampis) - Germany (Special Price)

Fossil Waterstrider (Propygolampis) - Germany (Special Price) #92463

This is a large and beautifully preserved fossil Waterstrider (Propygolampis bronni) from the Solnhofen Limestone in Germany. It was previously known as Chresmoda obscura but was renamed when it was found that name was already in use. It's 4.2" from leg tip to leg tip and the body is 1.9" in length. This is a very nice example of this rare fossil insect.

Although it looks much like a modern-day water-strider, it's more closely related to the stick insects. It likely made it’s living as the water striders do, skating across the surface of the water, preying on other insects.

The Solnhofen limestone is a famous Upper Jurassic lagerstätte in Germany. It is where one of the most famous fossils of all time, Archaeopteryx, was found. The fine-grained limestone makes excellent building material, which has led to heavy quarrying over the past two centuries. In the process, some spectacular fossils were unearthed, including fossil dragonflies, fish, pterosaurs, shrimp, horseshoe crabs, and many more.

This area represents an ancient archipelago at the edge of a sea. Due to high salt content, the lowest levels in the water column could not support much life and were largely devoid of oxygen. This lack of oxygen and scavengers on the bottom of the sea led to beautiful fossil preservation.