Early insect evolution likely unfolded inside moist moss mats on land
Evidence
Invertebrates are attracted to forests of moss for the same reasons that rain forests shelter such diversity of wildlife. They offer a favorable microclimate, shelter, food, nutrients, and a complex internal structure, which creates a great diversity of habitats. And like the rain forest, a moss forest is a hotspot for evolution. Mosses were the first plants to colonize the land, and paved the way for the creatures that followed. Many entomologists believe that the early stages of insect evolution took place in the mats of moss. The moist protection offered by mosses created a transitional environment between primitive aquatic life and more advanced terrestrial organisms. — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Gathering Moss, 260
Categorization
- QUESTION: Moss mats as the transitional nursery between aquatic arthropods and terrestrial insects — does modern paleoentomology actually support this, and which lineages?
- SHARE: The claim that insect evolution’s early stages played out in moss mats connects moss to deep evolutionary history — worth sending to a paleo- or entomology-minded friend.
- XREF: connects to: Predation pressure drives camouflage and mimicry inside the moss forest too — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural…, 263
Broader Connections
- Predation pressure drives camouflage and mimicry inside the moss forest too
#qualifies(0.72) — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Gathering Moss, 263