Incorporating fossils into hypotheses of insect phylogeny

Fossils represent stem and crown lineages, and their inclusion in phylogenetic reconstruction influences branch lengths, topology, and divergence time estimation. In addition, paleontological data may inform trends in morphological evolution as well as biogeographic history. Here we review the incorporation of fossils in studies of insect evolution, from morphological analyses to combined 'total evidence' node dating analyses. We discuss...