Wayne's Word Index Noteworthy Plants Trivia Lemnaceae Biology 101 Botany Search  Neotropical Amber   West Indian Locust   Pseudoscorpion   Midge In Amber   Amber Necklace   Poison Oak Resin   Botanical Jewelry   Drift Seeds & Fruits  Is Your Amber Necklace Genuine? Bogus Amber, Copal & True New World Amber © W.P. Armstrong 31 March 2010    Amber Beads Fluorescing Under UV Light    Assorted Necklaces--Including Bogus Amber    Central American Copal And Amber    Central American Copal & Amber Candy When exposed to ultraviolet light, transparent Dominican Republic amber fluoresces intensely in beautiful shades of blue. The photo was taken at F 5.6 with a fifteen minute time exposure. Assorted necklaces from Africa made from opaque copal, translucent amber and artificial "cherry amber." The large copal beads (left) come from the hardened resin of a leguminous tree closely related to the West Indian Locust. The large bead (lower right) may be a plastic, butterscotch-colored polymer. Chunks of Central American copal (left) and transparent amber beads of Dominican Republic amber. The copal comes from resin of the West Indian locust (Hymenaea courbaril). The true amber comes from the polymerized resin of an ancient extinct relative of the West Indian locust (H. protera). Two amber look-alikes. Left: Polished chunk of Central American copal, the hardened (but not amberized) resin of the West Indian locust (Hymenaea courbaril); Right: Well-preserved scorpion entombed in carbohydrate mixture known as amber candy. True New World amber comes from the polymerized resin of an ancient extinct relative of the West Indian locust (H. protera). Return To The New World Amber Article Return To The WAYNE'S WORD Home Page Go To The NOTEWORTHY PLANTS Menu All text material & images on these pages copyright © W.P. Armstrong