>> I'm not current with the latest discoveries since then so can't comment
>> much more than to say that it's always been thought that the evolutionary
>> development of the insects (and other land-dwelling arthropoda) was closely
>> tied to the evolutionary development of land plants (a whole new ecosystem
>> to exploit!).
>
> In that light, it is a puzzle that there are so few Mesozoic insects, when
> the first flowering plants to be preserved had entomophyllous pollen.
On what basis are you saying that there are few Mesozoic insects? Few in
terms of diversity? Few in terms of fossil localities? What exactly is the
"puzzle" you're referring to?
- Steve.
-- Steven H. Schimmrich, Assistant Professor of Geology Department of Geology, Geography, and Environmental Studies Calvin College, 3201 Burton Street SE, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49546 sschimmr@calvin.edu (office), schimmri@earthlink.net (home) 616-957-7053 (voice mail), 616-957-6501 (fax) http://home.earthlink.net/~schimmrich/