Ancient Assassin Flies Found Embedded In Amber Date Back 100 Million Years

An extinct species of assassin fly that lived during the age of the dinosaurs has been discovered inside a translucent tomb of amber.

A male and a female of the newfound species, now called Burmapogon bruckschi, were preserved in pieces of Burmese amber from Myanmar's Hukawng Valley. The specimens measure less than an inch (2.5 centimeters) in length and are about 100 million years old, researchers say.

B. bruckschi joins more than 7,500 species of assassin flies that are alive today. The insects get their name from their precise and gruesome way of killing: After a mid-flight ambush, assassin flies stab their prey's exoskeleton and inject digestive juices so that they can suck out the liquefied insides like a milkshake, leaving an empty hull behind. [Photos: Ancient Assassin Flies Trapped in Amber]read more