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Web edition: June 22, 2012
About 300 million years ago, long before the first dinosaurs appeared, a different type of oversized critter inhabited Earth: giant insects. Scientists suspect bugs grew bigger then because the atmosphere contained more oxygen than it does now. For example: Wings of one ancient dragonfly measured almost as long, tip to tip, as a Little League baseball bat.
Alas, the giant insects didn’t last, and a modern dragonfly can fit comfortably inside a Wiffle ball. In a new study, researchers say the reign of mammoth insects ended when hungry, flying predators came along about 150 million years ago.
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Citations
D. Powell. Ancient birds wiped out huge insects. Science News Online, June 4, 2012. [Go to]
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