Was insect biodiversity in the Triassic akin to today? - a case study fromthe Molteno Formation (South Africa)

The Molteno Formation in South Africa yields by far the richest known palae oentomofauna of the Triassic world. A review of the present state of knowle dge of the systematics of fossil Insecta from the Molteno Formation suggest s that 1) 6 of the 7 different plant associations classified in this palaeo biome were in various proportions inhabited by Insecta, 2) > 80 % of the In secta are represented by herbivores, 3) the apparent absence of Diptera in this palaeobiome is still enigmatic and 4) the palaeoentomofauna of the Mol teno Formation, in intimate cc-evolution with the associated palaeoflora, s uggests levels of explosive diversification akin to today.