Insects of the Carboniferous (IMAGE)
Caption
Carboniferous of Europe, a swampy palaeoenvironmental setting with tree-like Lepidodendron (lycopsids) forming a dense forest. Also shown is stem of a giant horsetail -- calamites (the one growing at an odd angle). The winged insect climbing a horsetail (equisetum) is a primitive cockroach Manoblatta sp. Flying insects are the large dragonflies (meganeura). At the top centre of the image is a Homoioptera with a pair of long tails. In the front of the pair of wings, it has a of pair flap-like protonal paranota. Protonal paranota are not found today on winged insects, these are probably remnants of the early evolution of insects' wings. Coming out of its burrow is a mesothelae spider. I was told that there is not much information available about these spiders, but they are most likely to have had a segmented body, and may have lived in burrows. There is an amphibian resting beyond the calamite trunk, at the base of a lepidodendron trunk.
Credit
Richard Bizley <a href="http://www.bizleyart.com" target="_blank">www.bizleyart.com</a>
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Please credit: Richard Bizley <a href="http://www.bizleyart.com" target="_blank">www.bizleyart.com</a>
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