Subject: Salted Bugs
Location: Dead Sea, Israel
January 22, 2017 2:02 am
Hi Bug Folks,
Not looking for an identification this time, just sending pictures of an interesting phenomenon.
I was hiking along the Dead Sea coast in the Judean Desert, and came across several insects preserved in salt. I don’t know how long they were there or how they came to be there, but they seem very well preserved.
Enjoy!
Signature: Ben from Israel
Dear Ben,
We apologize for taking so long to get back to you, but we had extra work responsibilities in January. Thanks so much for informing us of this interesting phenomenon. Salting is a well known food preservation technique, so these “bugs” might be quite old, though we doubt they are actual fossils.
Hi Daniel,
These are most definitely NOT fossils, as they were found right on the beach of the Dead Sea. Sadly, the Dead Sea is shrinking at an alarming rate, its surface dropping an average 1.20 meters (about 4 feet) a year! So these insects landed, died and got covered in salt within the last two or three months.
That being said, if any of your readers want to experience the Dead Sea, they’d better hurry up!
Thanks for letting us know Ben.
Hi Daniel,
These are most definitely NOT fossils, as they were found right on the beach of the Dead Sea. Sadly, the Dead Sea is shrinking at an alarming rate, its surface dropping an average 1.20 meters (about 4 feet) a year! So these insects landed, died and got covered in salt within the last two or three months.
That being said, if any of your readers want to experience the Dead Sea, they’d better hurry up!