Miomoptera is an extinct order of insects. Although it is thought to be a
common ancestor
Common descent is a concept in evolutionary biology applicable when one species is the ancestor of two or more species later in time. All living beings are in fact descendants of a unique ancestor commonly referred to as the last universal comm ...
of all
holometabolous
Holometabolism, also called complete metamorphosis, is a form of insect development which includes four life stages: egg, larva, pupa, and imago (or adult). Holometabolism is a synapomorphic trait of all insects in the superorder Endopterygota. ...
insects, because no smooth transition between Miomoptera and other holometabolous insect orders is known, it is considered to be in a separate order unto itself.
The Miomopterans were small insects, with unspecialised chewing
mandible
In anatomy, the mandible, lower jaw or jawbone is the largest, strongest and lowest bone in the human facial skeleton. It forms the lower jaw and holds the lower teeth in place. The mandible sits beneath the maxilla. It is the only movable bone ...
s and short abdominal
cerci. They had four wings of equal size, with a relatively simple
venation
Venation may refer to:
* Venation (botany), the arrangement of veins in leaves
* Wing venation, the arrangement of veins in insect wings
See also
*
* Vernation
Vernation (from ''vernal'' meaning ''spring'', since that is when leaves spring fort ...
, similar to that of the more primitive living holometabolous insects, such as
lacewings.
Adult morphology suggests the adults lived in open habitats. The morphology and gut content shows they fed on the pollen and
strobili
A strobilus (plural: strobili) is a structure present on many land plant species consisting of sporangia-bearing structures densely aggregated along a stem. Strobili are often called cones, but some botanists restrict the use of the term cone to th ...
of gymnosperms. Based on the morphology of the
ovipositor, larvae also fed on the
pollen of strobili, moving between the scales from one
microsporangium to another.
Families and genera
*
Metropatoridae
**''
Metropator''
*
Archaemiopteridae
**''
Archaemioptera''
**''
Eodelopterum''
**''
Saaromioptera''
**''
Tychtodelopterum''
*
Palaeomanteidae
**''
Palaeomantis''
**''
Delopterum''
**''
Miomatoneura''
**''
Miomatoneurella''
**''
Permodelopterum''
**''
Perunopterum''
*
Permosialidae Martynov, 1928
**''
Epimastax Martynov, 1928
**''
Permonka''
Riek, 1973
**''
Sarbalopterodes''
Storozhenko, 1991
**''
Permosialis''
Martynov, 1928
Reference:
[Tree of Life Web Project. 2003]
Miomoptera.
i
The Tree of Life Web Project
References
* Rasnitsyn, A.P. & Dijk, D.E., van. 2011. The first Gondwanan ''Epimastax'' from the Lopingian of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa (Insecta: Palaeomanteida = Miomoptera: Permosialidae). ''African Invertebrates
''African Invertebrates'' is a peer-reviewed open access scientific journal that covers the taxonomy, systematics, biogeography, ecology, conservation, and palaeontology of Afrotropical invertebrates, whether terrestrial, freshwater, or ma ...
'' 52 (1): 207–20
Extinct insect orders
Carboniferous first appearances
Middle Jurassic extinctions
Endopterygota
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