The Extinction of the Giant Insects that Used to Populate the Earth | SLICE SCIENCE

Today, insects are no longer giant except in our nightmares... But 320 million years ago, dragonflies measuring up to a meter (Meganeura) or centipedes the size of a human (Arthropleura) dominated the land and air. Over the course of time, these fascinating giants became smaller and smaller… before disappearing altogether. By combining state of the art scientific experiment, reconstitutions using CGI and interviews with paleontologists, stones will speak and explain why giant insects became extinct. Here is the true story of the conquest of the air.
Documentary: A New Prehistory EP1: What Killed the Giant Insects?
Directed by: Emma Baus & Bertrand Loyer
Production: Saint Thomas Productions for ARTE France
#freedocumentary #documentary #sciencedocumentary #science #scientific #insects #giantinsects #carboniferous #evolution

[@gardengeek3041]

This is as good as it gets in the realm of biology documentaries. Everything we knew about giant insects 60 yrs ago, plus all the subsequent related discoveries and theories. The animations, maps and use of scientific names are of universal appeal. We even meet the scientists themselves. 5 stars out of 5 ! And many thanks.

[@SLICE_Science]

Thank you! We are glad that you enjoyed this video, this documentary is part of series from which we also published the second episode right here : kzbin.info/www/bejne/e3SbYmmFhrWhoKs 😉

[@ummeli2]

Why would humans not have survived in the high-oxygen climate?

[@UNOwen1]

The most straightforward reason these (HUGE) insects ('simply') disappeared is for the same reason they APPEARED: the oxygen level of the planet's atmosphere. Since insects breathe through spiracles (tiny little openings in their bodies through which muscular contraction sucks air in and pushes it out, allowing them to inhale and exhale), the higher the oxygen level, the more capable they are of sustaining a large body. However, in an atmosphere such as ours today, it's impossible for the air to get into a 10-foot-long centipede and enable it to 'breathe'. Simply put, less oxygen in the atmosphere means smaller insect bodies and higher oxygen means larger insect bodies. There is ONE other vital thing to bear in mind: insects have exoskeletons, and as they get bigger, they need more oxygen, but at a certain point, the weight from carrying the support structure on the outside becomes too unbearable. In other words, there's the topmost limit an insect's body plan can reach-even in a highly oxygenated atmosphere. If I remember correctly, an experiment was done in which larval insects were 'raised' within a sealed, highly oxygenated structure and grew more significantly than usual. These insects couldn't survive outside of this very restricted environment...they were sort of the "insects in the plastic oxygen bubble" (if anybody gets that reference, give yourself a ⭐️😉).

[@Talltrees84]

Looks like the Dragon Fly from the cartoon movie "The Rescueres." Came out in the late 70s.

[@geoffreyM2TW]

If the iron was oxidised in the red sediments, there must have been more oxygen in the environment than in the intervening middle Permian period. Why does that not explain the increasing size of the insects? The question should be why was there more oxygen at this period?

[@richardcrosswicks7058]

Nothing could break down the lignin in the plants yet. So all that carbon didn't turn to CO2. It turned to coal.

[@flashgordon3715]

I'm just guessing, but I imagine small insects ate the big insects. At least in some cases. In some cases, there just wasn't enough oxygen. Oddly enough, many extraterrestrials find oxygen fatality toxic.

[@이이-n4z8y]

That last nonsense about climate, was enough. The scientists even said habitat loss.