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Meganisoptera
Meganisoptera is an extinct order of very large to gigantic insects, informally called griffinflies. The order was formerly named Protodonata, the "proto-Odonata", for their similar appearance and supposed relation to modern Odonata (damselflies and dragonflies). They range in Palaeozoic (Late Carboniferous to Late Permian) times. Though most were only slightly larger than modern dragonflies, the order includes the largest known insect species, such as the late Carboniferous '' Meganeura monyi'' and the even larger early Permian ''Meganeuropsis permiana'', with wingspans of up to . The forewings and hindwings are similar in venation (a primitive feature) except for the larger anal (rearwards) area in the hindwing. The forewing is usually slenderer and slightly longer than the hindwing. Unlike the true dragonflies, the Odonata, they had no pterostigmas, and had a somewhat simpler pattern of veins in the wings. Most specimens are known from wing fragments only; with only a few as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meganeuropsis Permiana
''Meganeuropsis'' is an extinct genus of griffinfly, order Meganisoptera, known from the Early Permian Wellington Formation of North America, and represents the largest known insect of all time. ''Meganeuropsis'' existed during the Artinskian age of the Permian period, 290.1–283.5 mya. The genus includes two described species by Frank Morton Carpenter, fossil insect curator at the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard University: ''Meganeuropsis permiana'' described in 1939 from Elmo, Kansas. It was one of the largest known insects that ever lived, with a reconstructed wing length of , an estimated wingspan of up to , and a body length from head to tail of almost . The holotype is held in the Museum of Comparative Zoology. ''Meganeuropsis americana'', discovered in Noble, Oklahoma Noble is a city in Cleveland County, Oklahoma, United States, and is part of the Oklahoma City Metropolitan Area. The population was 6,481 at the 2010 census. Noble is Cleveland County's ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Odonata
Odonata is an order of flying insects that includes the dragonflies and damselflies. Members of the group first appeared during the Triassic, though members of their total group, Odonatoptera, first appeared in Late Carboniferous. The two common groups are distinguished with dragonflies, placed in the suborder Epiprocta, usually being larger, with eyes together and wings up or out at rest, while damselflies, suborder Zygoptera, are usually smaller with eyes placed apart and wings along body at rest. All Odonata have aquatic larvae called naiads (nymphs), and all of them, larvae and adults, are carnivorous. The adults can land, but rarely walk. Their legs are specialised for catching prey. They are almost entirely insectivorous. Etymology and terminology Fabricius coined the term ''Odonata'' in 1793 from the Ancient Greek ( Ionic form of ) 'tooth'. One hypothesis is that it was because their maxillae are notably toothed. Most insects also have toothed mandibles. The wo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meganeura
''Meganeura'' is a genus of extinct insects from the Late Carboniferous (approximately 300 million years ago). They resembled and are related to the present-day dragonflies and damselflies, and were predatory, with their diet mainly consisting of other insects. The genus belongs to the Meganeuridae, a family including other similarly giant dragonfly-like insects ranging from the Late Carboniferous to Middle Permian. With a wingspan ranging from to over , ''M. monyi'' is one of the largest-known flying insect species. Fossils of ''Meganeura'' were first discovered in Late Carboniferous ( Stephanian) Coal Measures of Commentry, France in 1880. In 1885, French paleontologist Charles Brongniart described and named the fossil "''Meganeura''" (large-nerved), which refers to the network of veins on the insect's wings. Another fine fossil specimen was found in 1979 at Bolsover in Derbyshire. The holotype is housed in the National Museum of Natural History, in Paris. Despite being the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meganeuridae
Meganeuridae is an extinct family of griffinfly in the order Meganisoptera. There are more than 20 genera and 50 described species in Meganeuridae. Genera These 21 genera belong to the family Meganeuridae: * † '' Arctotypus'' Martynov, 1932 * † ''Bohemiatupus'' Prokop & Nel, 2010 * † '' Boltonites'' Handlirsch, 1919 * † '' Carpentertypus'' Zessin 1983 * † '' Curvitupus'' Nel, Fleck, Garrouste, Gand, Lapeyrie, Bybee & Prokop, 2009 * † '' Ephemerites'' Geinitz, 1865 * † '' Gallotupus'' Nel, Garrouste & Roques, 2008 * † '' Gilsonia'' Meunier, 1908 * † ''Meganeura'' Brongniart, 1885 * † '' Meganeurina'' Handlirsch, 1919 * † ''Meganeuropsis'' Carpenter, 1939 * † '' Meganeurula'' Handlirsch, 1906 * † ''Megatypus ''Megatypus'' is an extinct genus of insect of the order Meganisoptera Meganisoptera is an extinct order of very large to gigantic insects, informally called griffinflies. The order was formerly named Protodonata, the "proto-Odonata", for thei .. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paralogidae
Paralogidae is an extinct family of griffinfly in the order Meganisoptera Meganisoptera is an extinct order of very large to gigantic insects, informally called griffinflies. The order was formerly named Protodonata, the "proto-Odonata", for their similar appearance and supposed relation to modern Odonata (damselflies .... There are at least two genera and three described species in Paralogidae. Genera These two genera belong to the family Paralogidae: * † '' Paralogus'' Scudder 1893 * † '' Truemania'' Bolton 1934 References Meganisoptera Prehistoric insect families Carboniferous insects {{Paleo-insect-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Meganeura Monyi Au Museum De Toulouse
''Meganeura'' is a genus of extinct insects from the Late Carboniferous (approximately 300 million years ago). They resembled and are related to the present-day dragonflies and damselflies Damselflies are flying insects of the suborder Zygoptera in the order Odonata. They are similar to dragonflies, which constitute the other odonatan suborder, Anisoptera, but are smaller and have slimmer bodies. Most species fold the wings along ..., and were Predation, predatory, with their diet mainly consisting of other insects. The genus belongs to the Meganeuridae, a family including other similarly giant dragonfly-like insects ranging from the Late Carboniferous to Middle Permian. With a wingspan ranging from to over , ''M. monyi'' is one of the largest-known flying insect species. Fossils of ''Meganeura'' were first discovered in Late Carboniferous (Stephanian (stage), Stephanian) Coal measures, Coal Measures of Commentry, France in 1880. In 1885, French Paleontology, paleontologis ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Upper Permian
The Permian ( ) is a geologic period and stratigraphic system which spans 47 million years from the end of the Carboniferous Period million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Triassic Period 251.9 Mya. It is the last period of the Paleozoic Era; the following Triassic Period belongs to the Mesozoic Era. The concept of the Permian was introduced in 1841 by geologist Sir Roderick Murchison, who named it after the region of Perm in Russia. The Permian witnessed the diversification of the two groups of amniotes, the synapsids and the sauropsids (reptiles). The world at the time was dominated by the supercontinent Pangaea, which had formed due to the collision of Euramerica and Gondwana during the Carboniferous. Pangaea was surrounded by the superocean Panthalassa. The Carboniferous rainforest collapse left behind vast regions of desert within the continental interior. Amniotes, which could better cope with these drier conditions, rose to dominance in place of their amp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mandible (insect Mouthpart)
Insect mandibles are a pair of appendages near the insect's mouth, and the most anterior of the three pairs of oral appendages (the labrum is more anterior, but is a single fused structure). Their function is typically to grasp, crush, or cut the insect's food, or to defend against predators or rivals. Insect mandibles, which appear to be evolutionarily derived from legs, move in the horizontal plane unlike those of vertebrates, which appear to be derived from gill arches and move vertically. Grasshoppers, crickets, and other simple insects The mouthparts of orthopteran insects are often used as a basic example of mandibulate (chewing) mouthparts, and the mandibles themselves are likewise generalized in structure. They are large and hardened, shaped like pinchers, with cutting surfaces on the distal portion and chewing or grinding surfaces basally. They are usually lined with teeth and move sideways. Large pieces of leaves can therefore be cut and then pulverized near the mouth ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nymph (biology)
In biology, a nymph is the immature form of some invertebrates, particularly insects, which undergoes gradual metamorphosis (hemimetabolism) before reaching its adult stage. Unlike a typical larva, a nymph's overall form already resembles that of the adult, except for a lack of wings (in winged species). In addition, while a nymph moults, it never enters a pupal stage. Instead, the final moult results in an adult insect. Nymphs undergo multiple stages of development called instars. This is the case, for example, in Orthoptera (crickets, grasshoppers and locusts), Hemiptera (cicadas, shield bugs, whiteflies, aphids, leafhoppers, froghoppers, treehoppers etc.), mayflies, termites, cockroaches, mantises, stoneflies and Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies). Nymphs of aquatic insects, as in the Odonata, Ephemeroptera, and Plecoptera, are also called naiads, an Ancient Greek name for mythological water nymphs. Usage of the term 'naiad' is no longer popular among entomologists, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Insect Mouthparts
Insects have mouthparts that may vary greatly across insect species, as they are adapted to particular modes of feeding. The earliest insects had chewing mouthparts. Most specialisation of mouthparts are for piercing and sucking, and this mode of feeding has evolved a number of times idependently. For example, mosquitoes and aphids (which are true bugs) both pierce and suck, however female mosquitoes feed on animal blood whereas aphids feed on plant fluids. Evolution Like most external features of arthropods, the mouthparts of Hexapoda are highly derived. Insect mouthparts show a multitude of different functional mechanisms across the wide diversity of insect species. It is common for significant homology to be conserved, with matching structures forming from matching primordia, and having the same evolutionary origin. However, even if structures are almost physically and functionally identical, they may not be homologous; their analogous functions and appearance might be the pr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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