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Ptiliidae
Ptiliidae is a family of very tiny beetles (including the smallest of all beetles) with a cosmopolitan distribution. They are colloquially called featherwing beetles, because the hindwings are narrow and feathery. There are approximately 600 described species in 80 genera, but large numbers of specimens in collections await description and the true number of species is likely to be much higher than this. The family is divided into 3 subfamilies: * Acrotrichinae * Cephaloplectinae * Ptiliinae Description This family contains the smallest of all beetles, with a length when fully grown of . The weight is approximately 0.4 milligrams. Ptillid wings are feathery due to the much higher effective viscosity of air at small body sizes, which makes normal insect wings much less efficient. Unlike other small insects with feathery wings, such as parasitic wasps like fairyflies, ptillids do not fly using a clap and fling motion, but instead fly using a figure of eight pattern wher ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pteryx
''Pteryx'' is a genus of beetles that is typically found in northern bogs in the Northern Hemisphere. They belong to the family Ptiliidae which is referred to as feather-winged beetles as the insect wing, hindwings are narrow and feather-like. Like most of the rest of the family, ''Pteryx'' are very small and live in rotting vegetative matter. They prefer rotting wood and are generally found under the bark of rotting logs or stumps. Description The ''Pteryx'' are less than 1 mm in length. They are Polymorphism (biology), polymorphic, in that they frequently occur in two forms, a normal variety, and a neonate form that has only vestigial wings, pale body pigmentation, and no pigmentation in their smaller eyes.Dybas, Henry S. (1978) "The Systematics, and Geographical and Ecological Distribution of Ptiliopycna, a Nearctic Genus of Parthenogenetic Featherwing Beetles (Coleoptera: Ptiliidae)" ''The American Midland Naturalist'' 99(1): pp. 83-100, page 96 Distribution ''Pteryx ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ptenidium Pusillum
''Ptenidium'' is a genus of beetles belonging to the family Ptiliidae. The genus has cosmopolitan distribution In biogeography, a cosmopolitan distribution is the range of a taxon that extends across most or all of the surface of the Earth, in appropriate habitats; most cosmopolitan species are known to be highly adaptable to a range of climatic and en .... Species: * '' Ptenidium aprinum'' Peyerimhoff, 1917 * '' Ptenidium azafady'' Darby, 2014 References Ptiliidae {{Ptiliidae-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Beetle
Beetles are insects that form the Taxonomic rank, order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Holometabola. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 400,000 described species, is the largest of all orders, constituting almost 40% of described arthropods and 25% of all known animal species; new species are discovered frequently, with estimates suggesting that there are between 0.9 and 2.1 million total species. However, the number of beetle species is challenged by the number of species in Fly, dipterans (flies) and hymenopterans (wasps). Found in almost every habitat except the sea and the polar regions, they interact with their ecosystems in several ways: beetles often feed on plants and fungi, break down animal and plant debris, and eat other invertebrates. Some species are serious agricultural pests, such as the Colorado potato beetle, while others such as Coccinellidae (ladybirds or ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Insect Wing
Insect wings are adult outgrowths of the insect exoskeleton that enable insect flight, insects to fly. They are found on the second and third Thorax (insect anatomy), 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 Odonata, dragonflies and Neuroptera, 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 (biology), family or even genus level in many order (biology), 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 win ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ptinella
''Ptinella'' is a genus of beetles belonging to the family Ptiliidae. The genus has almost cosmopolitan distribution In biogeography, a cosmopolitan distribution is the range of a taxon that extends across most or all of the surface of the Earth, in appropriate habitats; most cosmopolitan species are known to be highly adaptable to a range of climatic and en .... Species: * '' Ptinella acaciae'' Johnson, 1982 * '' Ptinella africana'' Paulian & Delamare-Deboutteville, 1948 References {{Taxonbar, from=Q2116217 Ptiliidae ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ptiliinae
Ptiliinae is the largest subfamily of feather-winged beetles (family Ptilidae). About 80% of the described genera of these very tiny beetles are contained herein; however, many more genera and species await description. Like all members of their family, they are usually found in rotting organic material in a wide range of habitats. The clutch generally contains only a single egg, which is very large in comparison to the adult female, sometimes half as long as the beetle itself. Selected genera See also * Smallest organisms The smallest organisms found on Earth can be determined according to various aspects of organism size, including volume, mass, height, length, or genome size. Given the incomplete nature of scientific knowledge, it is possible that the smallest or ... Ptiliidae Beetle subfamilies {{Ptiliidae-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oligocene
The Oligocene ( ) is a geologic epoch (geology), epoch of the Paleogene Geologic time scale, Period that extends from about 33.9 million to 23 million years before the present ( to ). As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the epoch are well identified but the exact dates of the start and end of the epoch are slightly uncertain. The name Oligocene was coined in 1854 by the German paleontologist Heinrich Ernst Beyrich from his studies of marine beds in Belgium and Germany. The name comes from Ancient Greek (''olígos'') 'few' and (''kainós'') 'new', and refers to the sparsity of Neontology, extant forms of Mollusca, molluscs. The Oligocene is preceded by the Eocene Epoch and is followed by the Miocene Epoch. The Oligocene is the third and final epoch of the Paleogene Period. The Oligocene is often considered an important time of transition, a link between the archaic world of the tropical Eocene and the more modern ecosystems of the Miocene. Major chang ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Million Years Ago
Million years ago, abbreviated as Mya, Myr (megayear) or Ma (megaannum), is a unit of time equal to (i.e. years), or approximately 31.6 teraseconds. Usage Myr is in common use in fields such as Earth science and cosmology. Myr is also used with Mya or Ma. Together they make a reference system, one to a quantity, the other to a particular point in a year numbering system that is ''time before the present''. Myr is deprecated in geology, but in astronomy ''Myr'' is standard. Where "myr" ''is'' seen in geology, it is usually "Myr" (a unit of mega-years). In astronomy, it is usually "Myr" (Million years). Debate In geology, a debate remains open concerning the use of ''Myr'' (duration) plus ''Mya'' (million years ago) versus using only the term ''Ma''. In either case, the term '' Ma'' is used in geology literature conforming to ISO 31-1 (now ISO 80000-3) and NIST 811 recommended practices. Traditional style geology literature is written: The "ago" is implied, so that any s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clap-and-fling
Insects are the only group of invertebrates that have evolved wings and flight. Insects first flew in the Carboniferous, some 300 to 350 million years ago, making them the first animals to evolve flight. Wings may have evolved from appendages on the sides of existing limbs, which already had nerves, joints, and muscles used for other purposes. These may initially have been used for sailing on water, or to slow the rate of descent when gliding. Two insect groups, the dragonflies and the mayflies, have flight muscles attached directly to the wings. In other winged insects, flight muscles attach to the thorax, which make it oscillate in order to induce the wings to beat. Of these insects, some (flies and some beetles) achieve very high wingbeat frequencies through the evolution of an "asynchronous" nervous system, in which the thorax oscillates faster than the rate of nerve impulses. Not all insects are capable of flight. A number of apterous insects have secondarily lost their w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eocene
The Eocene ( ) is a geological epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 56 to 33.9 million years ago (Ma). It is the second epoch of the Paleogene Period (geology), Period in the modern Cenozoic Era (geology), Era. The name ''Eocene'' comes from the Ancient Greek (''Ēṓs'', 'Eos, Dawn') and (''kainós'', "new") and refers to the "dawn" of modern ('new') fauna that appeared during the epoch.See: *Letter from William Whewell to Charles Lyell dated 31 January 1831 in: * From p. 55: "The period next antecedent we shall call Eocene, from ήως, aurora, and χαινος, recens, because the extremely small proportion of living species contained in these strata, indicates what may be considered the first commencement, or ''dawn'', of the existing state of the animate creation." The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Paleocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the Eocene is marked by a brief period in which the concentration of the carbon isoto ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Parthenogenesis
Parthenogenesis (; from the Greek + ) is a natural form of asexual reproduction in which the embryo develops directly from an egg without need for fertilization. In animals, parthenogenesis means the development of an embryo from an unfertilized Gametophyte, egg cell. In plants, parthenogenesis is a component process of apomixis. In algae, parthenogenesis can mean the development of an embryo from either an individual sperm or an individual egg. Parthenogenesis occurs naturally in some plants, algae, invertebrate animal species (including nematodes, some tardigrades, water fleas, some scorpions, aphids, some mites, some bees, some Phasmatodea, and parasitic wasps), and a few vertebrates, such as some fish, amphibians, and reptiles. This type of reproduction has been induced artificially in animal species that naturally reproduce through sex, including fish, amphibians, and mice. Normal egg cells form in the process of meiosis and are haploid, with half as many chromosomes as t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thelytoky
Thelytoky (from the Ancient Greek, Greek θῆλυς ''thēlys'' "female" and τόκος ''tókos'' "birth") is a type of parthenogenesis and is the absence of mating and subsequent production of all female diploid offspring as for example in aphids. Thelytokous parthenogenesis is rare among animals and reported in about 1,500 species, about 1 in 1000 of described animal species, according to a 1984 study. It is more common in invertebrates, like arthropods, but it can occur in vertebrates, including salamanders, fish, and reptiles such as some Cnemidophorus, whiptail lizards. Thelytoky can occur by different mechanisms, each of which has a different impact on the level of zygosity, homozygosity. It is found in several groups of Hymenoptera, including Apidae, Aphelinidae, Cynipidae, Formicidae, Ichneumonidae, and Tenthredinidae. It can be induced in Hymenoptera by the bacteria ''Wolbachia'' and ''Cardinium''. Advantages of thelytoky Species may encounter a few advantages employ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
