Meganeura, meaning "Large-Nerved,"
is a prehistoric griffinfly named
after the veins in its giant wings.
Griffinflies are similar to dragon-
flies, but lack a feature of 
dragonfly wings. Meganeura was one
of the largest griffinflies, with a
wingspan of 70 centimeters! There
are several hypotheses about why 
these insects got to be so huge,
but none are completely sufficient
explanations. The most popular 
states that higher oxygen levels 
allowed them to grow larger, and  
while there is some evidence to  
support this, the fact that species 
of giant flying insects exist in 
later, less oxygenated time periods
casts some doubt on this explanation. 
Another hypothesis refers to a lack 
of predators to eat them, letting 
them grow to maximum size and eat 
larger prey.

Meganeura lived in the Late Carbon-
iferous Period alongside its fellow
giant arthropod Arthropleura in an
environment called the coal forest.
The coal forest was a rainforest-
like wetland that later became the
coal we burn today (hence the name).
These forests supported a diverse
ecosystem that ranged from inverte-
brates like Meganeura to ancient
amphibians and reptiles. Meganeura
thrived in this environment, 
feasting on other insects like the
flying herbivores of the order
Palaeodictyoptera.
