The scientific study of fossil insects has primarily focused on describing new genera and species rather than quantifying the ecological prevalence of clades. The contrasting methods used for the study of insects in modern versus ancient ecosystems results in a mismatch that makes it difficult to compare past extinction events with the current biodiversity crisis. (Image originally published in Schachat and Labandeira 2021, Annals of the Entomological Society of America. All icons are from PhyloPic.org. Mantoida nitida Newman, public domain. Trachypachus gibbsii Leconte by T. Michael Keesey and Yves Bousquet; Somatochlora tenebrosa Say by Gareth Monger; and Eristalis tenax (L.) by Gareth Monger, CC BY 3.0. Hyalophora cecropia (L.) by Mali’o Kodis and Jim Vargo, CC BY-NC-SA 3.0.)