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Mesoraphidiidae
Mesoraphidiidae is an extinct family (biology), family of snakeflies in the suborder Raphidiomorpha. The family lived from the Late Jurassic through the Late Cretaceous and is known from twenty-five genera. Mesoraphidiids have been found as both compression fossils and as Inclusion (mineral), inclusions in amber. The family was first proposed in 1925 by the Russian paleoentomologist Andrey Vasilyevich Martynov based on Upper Jurassic fossils recovered in Kazakhstan. The family was expanded in 2002 by the synonym (taxonomy), synonymizing of several other proposed snakefly families. The family was divided into three subfamilies and one tribe in a 2011 paper, further clarifying the relationships of the included genera. Morphology and habitat Mesoraphidiidae are similar in overall appearance to modern snakefly species, having an elongated prothorax, giving a snake-like profile and from which the common name snakefly is derived. The family was likely tree-dwelling by nature, with lar ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Raphidiomorpha
Snakeflies are a group of predatory insects comprising the order Raphidioptera with two extant families: Raphidiidae and Inocelliidae, consisting of roughly 260 species. In the past, the group had a much wider distribution than it does now; snakeflies are found in temperate regions worldwide but are absent from the tropics and the Southern Hemisphere. Recognisable representatives of the group first appeared during the Early Jurassic. They are a relict group, having reached their apex of diversity during the Cretaceous before undergoing substantial decline. An adult snakefly resembles a lacewing in appearance but has a notably elongated thorax which, together with the mobile head, gives the group their common name. The body is long and slender and the two pairs of long, membranous wings are prominently veined. Females have a large and sturdy ovipositor which is used to deposit eggs in some concealed location. They are holometabolous insects with a four-stage life cycle consis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Snakeflies
Snakeflies are a group of predatory insects comprising the order Raphidioptera with two extant families: Raphidiidae and Inocelliidae, consisting of roughly 260 species. In the past, the group had a much wider distribution than it does now; snakeflies are found in temperate regions worldwide but are absent from the tropics and the Southern Hemisphere. Recognisable representatives of the group first appeared during the Early Jurassic. They are a relict group, having reached their apex of diversity during the Cretaceous before undergoing substantial decline. An adult snakefly resembles a lacewing in appearance but has a notably elongated thorax which, together with the mobile head, gives the group their common name. The body is long and slender and the two pairs of long, membranous wings are prominently veined. Females have a large and sturdy ovipositor which is used to deposit eggs in some concealed location. They are holometabolous insects with a four-stage life cycle consisting ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Styporaphidia
''Styporaphidia'' is a genus of snakefly, belonging to the extinct family Mesoraphidiidae, containing up to three species, the type species ''Styporaphidia magia'', ''Styporaphidia willmanni'' and tentatively ''Styporaphidia? hispanica''. The genus was named from the Greek ''stypos'' meaning "stem" or "stump" and ''Raphidia'', the type genus for, and most often used as, a stem for generic names in the order Raphidioptera. The species name of ''S. magia'' is from the Greek word ''mageia'' meaning "magic" while the species name for ''S.? hispanica'' is from the Latin ''Hispania'' meaning "Spain" in reference to the type locality of the species. ''S. magia'' ''S. magia'' is known from only the holotype, a single specimen of undetermined sex, deposited in the Department of Biology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China as specimen number NNS-200202. Preserved as a compression fossil, the individual is fossilized in a resting position giving a top view to the body and wings. P ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ororaphidia
''Ororaphidia'' is an extinct genus of snakefly containing two species: the type species ''Ororaphidia megalocephala'' and ''Ororaphidia bifurcata''. History and classification Doctors Michael S. Engel and Dong Ren first studied and described ''Ororaphidia'' and the co-occurring ''Styporaphidia'' and in 2008, publishing a formal description in the '' Journal of the Kansas Entomological Society'' volume 81. The genus name comes from the Greek ''oros'' meaning "mountain" and ''Raphidia'', the type genus for, and most often used as, a stem for generic names in the order Raphidioptera. The species name is a combination of the Greek words ''megalose'' meaning "very large" and ''kephale'' meaning "head" and is in reference to the notably large size of the head capsule compared to other raphidiopterans. Description The genus is known from only the holotype, a single female specimen, deposited in the Department of Biology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China as specimen number ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amarantoraphidia Ventolina
''Amarantoraphidia'' is an extinct genus of snakefly in the family Mesoraphidiidae. The genus is solely known from Early Cretaceous, Albian age, fossil amber found in Spain. Currently the genus comprises only a single species ''Amarantoraphidia ventolina''. History and classification ''Amarantoraphidia ventolina'' is known only from one fossil, the holotype, specimen number CES 364.1. The specimen is composed of a mostly complete adult insect with the wing tips missing. The apical third of the right hindwing is also gone and the left front most leg has been disarticulated. The specimen is included in a piece of amber with plant debris and a number of other insects, such as a thysanopteran, hymenopterans. and dipterans. The fossil was recovered from outcrops of the Escucha Formation in Moraza, part of the Province of Burgos in northern Spain. ''Amarantoraphidia'' was first studied by group of paleoentomologists led by Ricardo Pérez-de la Fuente of the University of Barce ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Late Jurassic
The Late Jurassic is the third epoch of the Jurassic Period, and it spans the geologic time from 163.5 ± 1.0 to 145.0 ± 0.8 million years ago (Ma), which is preserved in Upper Jurassic strata.Owen 1987. In European lithostratigraphy, the name "Malm" indicates rocks of Late Jurassic age. In the past, ''Malm'' was also used to indicate the unit of geological time, but this usage is now discouraged to make a clear distinction between lithostratigraphic and geochronologic/chronostratigraphic units. Subdivisions The Late Jurassic is divided into three ages, which correspond with the three (faunal) stages of Upper Jurassic rock: Paleogeography During the Late Jurassic Epoch, Pangaea broke up into two supercontinents, Laurasia to the north, and Gondwana to the south. The result of this break-up was the spawning of the Atlantic Ocean. However, at this time, the Atlantic Ocean was relatively narrow. Life forms of the epoch This epoch is well known for many famous types of dinosau ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Family (biology)
Family ( la, familia, plural ') is one of the eight major hierarchical taxonomic ranks in Linnaean taxonomy. It is classified between order and genus. A family may be divided into subfamilies, which are intermediate ranks between the ranks of family and genus. The official family names are Latin in origin; however, popular names are often used: for example, walnut trees and hickory trees belong to the family Juglandaceae, but that family is commonly referred to as the "walnut family". What belongs to a family—or if a described family should be recognized at all—are proposed and determined by practicing taxonomists. There are no hard rules for describing or recognizing a family, but in plants, they can be characterized on the basis of both vegetative and reproductive features of plant species. Taxonomists often take different positions about descriptions, and there may be no broad consensus across the scientific community for some time. The publishing of new data and opini ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Insect Wing
Insect wings are adult outgrowths of the insect exoskeleton that enable insects to fly. They are found on the second and third thoracic segments (the mesothorax and metathorax), and the two pairs are often referred to as the forewings and hindwings, respectively, though a few insects lack hindwings, even rudiments. The wings are strengthened by a number of longitudinal veins, which often have cross-connections that form closed "cells" in the membrane (extreme examples include the dragonflies and lacewings). The patterns resulting from the fusion and cross-connection of the wing veins are often diagnostic for different evolutionary lineages and can be used for identification to the family or even genus level in many orders of insects. Physically, some insects move their flight muscles directly, others indirectly. In insects with direct flight, the wing muscles directly attach to the wing base, so that a small downward movement of the wing base lifts the wing itself upward. Those i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pterostigma
The pterostigma (plural: pterostigmata) is a group of specialized cells in the outer insect wing, wings of insects, which are often thickened or coloured, and thus stand out from other cells. It is particularly noticeable in dragonfly, dragonflies, but present also in other insect groups, such as snakefly, snakeflies, hymenopterans, and megalopterans. Purpose The pterostigma, a heavier section of the wing than nearby sections, assists in gliding. Without the pterostigmata, self-exciting vibrations known as aeroelastic flutter, flutter would set in on the wing above a certain critical speed, making gliding impossible. Tests show that with the pterostigmata, the critical gliding speed is increased 10–25% on one species of dragonfly. Pseudopterostigma Some female damselfly, damselflies in the family Calopterygidae possess a ''pseudopterostigma''. This is similar in location on the wing to a true pterostigma but is crossed by veins and is only defined by its paler colour compared ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
