Geratonephila

Geratonephila Temporal range: Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian), 100  Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N ↓
The amber which shows Geratonephila attacking a wasp ( Cascoscelio incassus ) in its web
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Subphylum:	Chelicerata
Class:	Arachnida
Order:	Araneae
Infraorder:	Araneomorphae
Family:	Nephilidae
Genus:	† Geratonephila
Species:	†G. burmanica
Binomial name
†Geratonephila burmanica Poinar, 2012
Synonyms
Nephila burmanica

Geratonephila is a genus of spider in the family Nephilidae that lived around 100 million years ago during the Cenomanian stage of the Late Cretaceous Epoch. This genus contains one species, Geratonephila burmanica. ^[1]

It was discovered in Burmese amber. The amber it was in shows it attacking a species of wasp ( Cascoscelio incassus , family Platygastridae) in its web. This shows direct fossil evidence of predatory behavior in this extinct genus of spider. It is the only specimen preserving such behavior. ^[1]

References

1. Poinar Jr., George; Buckley, Ron (2012-10-01). "Predatory behaviour of the social orb-weaver spider, Geratonephila burmanica n. gen., n. sp. (Araneae: Nephilidae) with its wasp prey, Cascoscelio incassus n. gen., n. sp. (Hymenoptera: Platygastridae) in Early Cretaceous Burmese amber" . Historical Biology. 24 (5): 519–525. Bibcode:2012HBio...24..519P. doi:10.1080/08912963.2011.640399. ISSN   0891-2963.