Beorn leggi
From Tolkien Gateway
Beorn leggi is an extinct tardigrade (water bear) only known from one individual found in Cretaceous amber. It was described in 1964 by Kenneth W. Cooper who named the genus after the character Beorn from The Hobbit and the species after his student William M. Legg, who discovered the amber deposits.
Beorn leggi looks like a typical tardigrade and was assigned by Cooper to the Eutardigrada. It was found at Cedar Lake in Manitoba Province, Canada.
References
- K. W. Cooper, The first fossil tardigrade: Beorn leggi, from Cretaceous Amber, Psyche - Journal of Entomology, 71 (2), 1964, page 41
