Giant Griffinfly

Domain: Eukaryota

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Arthropoda

Class: Insecta

Division: Palaeoptera

Superorder: Odonatoptera

Order: †Meganisoptera

Family: †Meganeuridae

Genus: †Meganeura

Species: †Meganeura monyi

Descendant: other bugs

Named by: Charles Jules Edmée Brongniart

Year Published: 1885

Size: wing length reaching 32 centimetres (13 in)[1] and a wingspan about 65–75 cm (2.13–2.46 ft)

Lifespan: 10+ years?

Activity: Diurnal 🌅

Thermoregulate: Ectotherm

Type: Insects (†Griffenflies)

Title: 

• Largest Dragonfly

Pantheon: 

• Terran/Gaian 🇺🇳

Time Period: Late Carboniferous

Alignment: Reactive

Threat Level: ★★★★★

Diet: Carnivorous 🥩🪲

Elements: Air 🌬️

Inflicts: none

Weaknesses: Fire 🔥, Water 🌊, Rock 🪨, Air 🌬️, Electric ⚡, Leaf 🌿, Ice ❄️

Casualties: n/a

Based On: itself

Conservation Status: Extinct (EX) – IUCN Red List

In 1885, French paleontologist Charles Brongniart described and named the fossil "Meganeura" (great-nerved in Greek), which refers to the network of veins on the insect's wings.

Meganeura monyi is one of the largest known flying insect species, having wingspans that range from 65 cm (25.6 in) to over 70 cm (28 in). It belongs to the extinct order Meganisoptera, which has many characteristics with and is closely related to dragonflies and damselflies. These three animals are all members of the larger group Odonatoptera.

Meganeura had spines on the tibia and tarsi sections of the legs, which would have functioned as a "flying trap" to capture prey.

Griffinfies were predators that mostly ate other insects. Because each wing is controlled by a separate muscle, they can change direction quickly and with amazing agility, which allows them to chase prey at high speeds while hovering in midair. In other words, their muscles are essentially attached directly to the base of each wing.

The larvae of griffinflies are unique in that they pursue passing prey while residing in burrows along the riverbank. If a griffinfly lands on you, it won't bite. But if you grab a griffinfly and hold it in your palm carelessly, its teeth can reach your skin. The griffinfly may bite you to protect itself.

Prehistoric insects appear to have far outstripped the upper limit on body size set by the way oxygen diffuses through their tracheal breathing apparatus. Harlé (1911) first suggested that Meganeura could only fly because the atmosphere of Earth at the time had a higher oxygen content than the current 20 percent.

If this theory is right, these insects could not have survived in our current environment and would have been vulnerable to declining oxygen levels. There are "rapid cycles of tracheal compression and expansion" that show insects actually breathe, according to other studies. According to recent research on the flight energetics of contemporary insects and birds, the air density and oxygen concentrations both serve as upper bounds on size.

Other scientists initially rejected this theory, but more recent research on the connection between gigantism and oxygen availability has supported it. In humans and animals, breathing air that has more Carboniferous oxygen than the typical 21 percent found in the Earth's atmosphere can lead to organ damage, seizures, and even death, especially if the amount is higher than what the body requires.

Another theory suggests that insects that developed in water before becoming terrestrial as adults grew bigger as a way to protect themselves against the high levels of oxygen. Research on close relatives Meganeurula and Meganeurites suggest that Meganeura was adapted to open habitats, and similar in behaviour to extant hawkers. The eyes of Meganeura were likely enlarged relative to body size.

Rather, the species had far larger compound eyes and lived in more open environments. Similar to contemporary hawker dragonflies, these were dorsally hypertrophied, a specialty for long-distance eyesight above the animal in flight. They have the same specializations that dragonflies utilize to catch prey while in flight: strong mandibles with sharp teeth, robust spines on the tibiae and tarsi, and a noticeable thoracic skewness.

Studies indicate that Meganuera's typically lived near the edge of bodies of water such as streams and ponds. Furthermore, as carnivores they mainly ate other insects, small amphibians, and vertebrates using their long spine-like legs to grab and hold their prey.

Although griffinflies are thought to be harmful or hostile to people, they can be an annoyance when they are present in large enough numbers and are essential for managing insect populations.

Fossils of Meganeura were first discovered in Late Carboniferous (Stephanian) Coal Measures of Commentry, France in 1880.

• Movement Pattern: Random

• Individual Type: Solo

• Population Trend: Unknown

• Population: ???

• Locomotion: Terrestrial

• Habitat: Montane Grasslands and Shrublands; Temperate Coniferous Forests; Temperate Broadleaf and Mixed Forests; Temperate Deciduous Forests, Temperate Grasslands, Savannas, and Shrublands; Subtropical Coniferous Forests; Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests; Subtropical Dry Broadleaf Forests; Subtropical Grasslands, Savannas, and Shrublands; Stone Forest; Tropical Coniferous Forests; Tropical Moist Broadleaf Forests; Tropical Dry Broadleaf Forests; Tropical Grasslands; Tropical Savannas and Shrublands; Mediterranean Forests, Woodlands, and Scrub; Mushroom Forests; Mushroom Fields; Flooded Grasslands and Savannas; Swamp; Bayous/Billabongs; Riparian; Wetland; Mangrove Forest; Cold Bamboo Forests; Tropical Bamboo Forests; Air-breathing Coral Reefs; Warm River; Lukewarm River; Warm Pond.

• Earth: 

  • Extinct: France

Coming soon

Pre-Bereshit

The predecessors of silverfish, along with those of jumping bristletails, are considered the earliest and most primitive insects. They evolved at the latest in mid-Devonian and possibly as early as late Silurian more than 400 million years ago. Some fossilized arthropod trackways from the Paleozoic Era, known as Stiaria intermedia and often attributed to jumping bristletails, may have been produced by silverfish.

• none

• Coming soon

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meganeura

• https://www.deviantart.com/ognimdo2002/art/Meganeura-monyi-898530414