Palaeos		Odonatoptera
Arthropoda		Odonatoptera

Pterygota: Odonatoptera

PTERYGOTA
|--Palaeodictyopteroida  
|--Ephemeroptera
|--NEOPTERA
|  
`--ODONATOPTERA
   |--Eugeropteridae
   `--Holodonata
      |--Meganisoptera
      `--Odonata

Taxa on This Page

1. Eugeropteridae
2. Holodonata
3. Odonatoptera

This is a holding page, pending the addition of more content on basal Odonatoptera MAK120516

The Odonatoptera contain the living Odonata (dragonflies and damselflies) plus all fossil taxa more closely related to odonates than other living insects. The earliest known odonatopterans are recorded from the Upper Carboniferous. The best known of the basal odonatopterans are the meganeurids which had the largest wingspans of any known insect, up to about 640 mm in Meganeuropsis permiana (Grimaldi & Engel 2005).- CKT110413

Descriptions

Odonatoptera

Range: From Mid Carboniferous

Phylogeny: Pterygota : Rhyniognatha + (Ephemeroptera + Palaeodictyopteroida + Neoptera + * : Eugeropteridae + (Meganisoptera + Odonata)))

Characters: (from Grimaldi & Engel 2005): Wings with anal region reduced; distinctive form of bracing with kink in CuP where it meets AA; only two articular plates at wing base. CKT110413

Eugeropteridae

Range: Mid Carboniferous (Bashkirian)

Phylogeny: Odonatoptera Holodonata : + *

Holodonata

Range: From Mid Carboniferous

Phylogeny: Odonatoptera : Eugeropteridae + * : Meganisoptera + Odonata