Plastic Insects

Plastic Insects are a subclass of insects derived from a population of Tenebrio molitor engineered by humans in the twenty-first century as part of an effort to clean Earth's solid plastic waste pollution.

History
In the early twenty-first century, some human scientists observed the remarkable ability of Tenebrio molitor larvae to consume styrofoam. A twenty-year project to engineer a strain of plastic-neutralizing beetles followed, employing various genetic engineering strategies ranging from selective breeding to the use of laboratory gene editing. It culminated in the 2030s and populations of the modified beetles were released in large numbers worldwide, especially in dumps and landfills. Legal protections on the species were passed to ensure they would be able to complete their work.

These populations thrived in great numbers and soon became a near-ubiquitous pest due to their ability to consume almost any material, including house siding, rusted metal, and various sealants. This led to protections on the species being revoked and specialized pest extermination services thriving, resulting in the deployment of more insecticide which mostly just harmed native insect populations. Plastic insects survived the Sixth Mass Extinction, being hardy, unspecialized scavengers with a near-inexhaustible food supply.

Phylogeny
In the Second Carboniferous, these animals have diversified into a number of forms, outcompeting similar insects which were more vulnerable to the pressures of the Anthropocene and radiating into many specialized orders of insect with radically different lifestyles:
 * Coleopteroids - the least changed from the original coleopteran body plan of the tenebrionid ancestor.
 * Neocoleopteroids - in which the elytra have evolved back into softer front wings.
 * New Moths - the elytra and second wings have become larger and heavily decorated, with a similar appearance to moths and butterflies.
 * Eusocials - an order characterized by its high level of sociality, closely related to the coleopteroids.
 * Tarsals - characterized by their huge tarsal claws, which are used to swipe prey directly out of the air. Their elytra have fused into a single umbrella-like structure that helps keep them aloft while their wings are used for hovering and precision steering.