Giant prehistoric bugs

These enormous insects depicted in bad B movies exist mostly in the realm of science fiction. However, insects of giant proportions really did exist 300 million years ago.Also in:

Giant hooded katydids

Meganeura(giant prehistoric dragonfly) and human: size comparison

Insects and terrestrial arthropods have inhabited the Earth since before the time of the dinosaurs, growing much larger to their contemporary equivalents during the Carboniferous period, due in part to a surplus of oxygen in the Earth’s atmosphere. - HeritageDaily - Archaeology News

Kingdom Animalia (Animals) Phylum Arthropoda (Arthropods) Subphylum Hexapoda (Hexapods) Class Insecta (Insects) Order Hemiptera (True Bugs, Cicadas, Hoppers, Aphids and Allies) Suborder Heteroptera (True Bugs) Infraorder Nepomorpha (Aquatic Bugs) Superfamily Nepoidea Family Belostomatidae (Giant Water Bugs) Subfamily Lethocerinae (Possibly Lethocerus uhleri?) bugguide.net/node/view/850733 “...forewings cover all of abdomen except for two tube-like appendages at posterior end that function in…

@houseofthedinosaur on Instagram: “Purussaurus is one of the largest known crocodyliformes ever to have existed. Three other extinct crocodyliformes, Sarcosuchus, Deinosuchus…”

Badass pictures, gifs and videos of the awesome yet vicious cycle of nature.

silurian, my second favorite prehistoric era next to the carboniferous (giant bugs) : P lots of plated fishes, arthropods, and other creatures scurrying along the shallow waters

The Giant Isopod: This is one the largest species of the existing isopods. It’s so big because some creatures that live on the bottom of the ocean can experience “deep sea gigantism.” This is where the crustacean will grow much larger than its shallow sea dwelling counterparts. They look prehistoric because, honestly, they are. Isopods have been around for a long, long time.

Arthropleura armata

An online resource devoted to North American insects, spiders and their kin, offering identification, images, and information.

sea-scorpions

Read more about trilobite beetles here: sgmacro.blogspot.com/2016/09/trilobite-beetles-prehistori...

Giant Rhinoceros Beetle / Golofa claviger / Image by André De Kesel from flickr

Arthropleura (meaning “jointed ribs”) was a large millipede from the Carboniferous-Permian periods, (Visean to Sakmarian ages or 346 to 290 million years ago),[1] and was the largest known land arthropod ever. It fossils are known from Europe (the United Kingdom, Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, Spain) and North America (USA). Like all millipedes it is thought to have been herbivorous detritivores, though scientists do not have any coprolites to confirm. Arthropleura was a giant millipede…