Re: Insects at K/T boundary

[Peter Sheehan <sheehan@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Thu, 26 Jun 1997, Neale Monks wrote:

> Heinz & Andy Ross wrote:-
> 
> >>Hibernation seems the most plausible reason why insects were hardly affected
> >>by the K/T boundary event.
> 
> Or perhaps there wasn't much to affect them?
> 
> Neale.
> 
 
I suggest reading Conrad Labandeira's work a little more closely, especially
the paper in Science (1993) v. 261:310-315.  The insect mouthpart study 
form the 92 NACP abstract will be in the next Annual Review of Ecology 
and Systematics.  I think insects are one of the groups that were buffed 
from the effects of the impact.  All life was not wiped out--some groups 
preferentially survived.

Neal-- If you think not much happened, compare what was walking around on 
land in late Cretaceous communities with what was present in early 
Paleocene communities on land.