HOME
*





Carcinosomatoidea
Carcinosomatoidea is an extinct superfamily of eurypterids, an extinct group of chelicerate arthropods commonly known as "sea scorpions". It is one of the superfamilies classified as part of the suborder Eurypterina. Some carcinosomatoid genera have been suggested to have been fully marine as opposed to living in near-shore brackish or hypersaline environments. The majority of carcinosomatoid taxa are known from the paleocontinents of Laurentia, Baltica and Avalonia. Isolated and fragmentary fossils from the Late Silurian of Vietnam and the Czech Republic show that the terranes of Annamia and Perunica were within the geographical range of the carcinosomatoids. Only a few basal carcinosomatoids (e.g. ''Carcinosoma'' and '' Paracarcinosoma'') have been found in deeper waters whilst the more derived forms, such as '' Mixopterus'' and ''Lanarkopterus'' have not. Basal carcinosomatoids (Carcinosomatidae) are likely responsible for the fossil remains in Vietnam and the Czech Republic ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Carcinosomatidae
Carcinosomatidae (the name deriving from the type genus ''Carcinosoma'', meaning "crab body")Meaning osomaat ''www.dictionary.com''. Retrieved 7 September 2018. is a family of eurypterids, an extinct group of aquatic arthropods. They were members of the superfamily Carcinosomatoidea, also named after ''Carcinosoma''. Fossils of carcinosomatids have been found in North America, Europe and Asia, the family possibly having achieved a worldwide distribution, and range in age from the Late Ordovician to the Early Devonian. They were among the most marine eurypterids, known almost entirely from marine environments. Carcinosomatids varied considerably in size, from species only a few centimetres in length to some of the largest known arthropods. The largest carcinosomatid species, ''Carcinosoma punctatum'', reached lengths of at least and rivalled the largest eurypterid of all, ''Jaekelopterus'', in size. Morphologically, carcinosomatids were highly distinct from other eurypterids, k ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Carcinosoma
''Carcinosoma'' (meaning "crab body") is a genus of eurypterid, an extinct group of aquatic arthropods. Fossils of ''Carcinosoma'' are restricted to deposits of late Silurian (Late Llandovery to Early Pridoli) age. Classified as part of the family Carcinosomatidae, which the genus lends its name to, ''Carcinosoma'' contains seven species from North America and Great Britain. Carcinosomatid eurypterids had unusual proportions and features compared to other eurypterids, with a broad abdomen, thin and long tail and spined and forward-facing walking appendages. They were not as streamlined as other groups but had considerably more robust and well developed walking appendages. In ''Carcinosoma'', these spined walking appendages are thought to have been used to create a trap to capture prey in. The telson (the posteriormost division of the body) of ''Carcinosoma'' appears to have possessed distinct segmentation, ''Carcinosoma'' is the only known eurypterid to possess this feature. ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Eurypterina
Eurypterina is one of two suborders of eurypterids, an extinct group of chelicerate arthropods commonly known as "sea scorpions". Eurypterine eurypterids are sometimes informally known as "swimming eurypterids". They are known from fossil deposits worldwide, though primarily in North America and Europe. Seventy-five percent of eurypterid species are eurypterines; this represents 99% of specimens. The superfamily Pterygotioidea is the most species-rich clade, with 56 species, followed by the Adelophthalmoidea with 43 species; as sister taxa, they comprise the most derived eurypterines. Pterygotioidea includes the pterygotids, which are the only eurypterids known to have a cosmopolitan distribution. Though more numerous both in specimens and taxa, the eurypterines have the shorter temporal range of the two eurypterid suborders. They first appeared around the same time as the Stylonurina in the Middle Ordovician. The suborder faced a slow extinction during the Middle and Late Devo ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Paracarcinosoma
''Eusarcana'' (meaning "true flesh") is a genus of eurypterid, an extinct group of aquatic arthropods. Fossils of ''Eusarcana'' have been discovered in deposits ranging in age from the Early Silurian to the Early Devonian. Classified as part of the family Carcinosomatidae, the genus contains three species, ''E. acrocephalus'', ''E. obesus'' and ''E. scorpionis'', from the Silurian-Devonian of Scotland, the Czech Republic and the United States respectively. ''Eusarcana'' is known for its odd proportions and features; the broad abdomen, thin and long tail, spined and forward-facing walking appendages and sharp and curved tail spike differentiate it from most other eurypterids, but are shared with other carcinosomatid eurypterids. The triangular carapace, oddly positioned forward-facing eyes differentiate the genus further from its closest relatives. At 80 centimetres (31.5 in) in length, ''E. scorpionis'' represents a moderately large species of eurypterid, and far exceeded ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Eurypterid
Eurypterids, often informally called sea scorpions, are a group of extinct arthropods that form the Order (biology), order Eurypterida. The earliest known eurypterids date to the Darriwilian stage of the Ordovician period 467.3 Myr, million years ago. The group is likely to have appeared first either during the Early Ordovician or Late Cambrian period. With approximately 250 species, the Eurypterida is the most diverse Paleozoic Chelicerata, chelicerate order. Following their appearance during the Ordovician, eurypterids became major components of marine faunas during the Silurian, from which the majority of eurypterid species have been described. The Silurian genus ''Eurypterus'' accounts for more than 90% of all known eurypterid specimens. Though the group continued to diversify during the subsequent Devonian period, the eurypterids were heavily affected by the Late Devonian extinction event. They declined in numbers and diversity until becoming extinct during the Permian–Tri ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Mixopteridae
The Mixopteridae are a family of eurypterids, an extinct group of chelicerate arthropods commonly known as "sea scorpions". The family is one of two families contained in the superfamily Carcinosomatoidea (along with Carcinosomatidae), which in turn is one of the superfamilies classified as part of the suborder Eurypterina. Description Mixopterids were characterized by large exoskeletons with scattered tubercles or semicircular scales. The prosoma (head) was subquadrate, protruding antemedially. The chelicerae (claws in front of the mouth) were small. The first two pairs of walking legs were strongly developed, with long paired spines. The third and fourth walking legs were moderately sized, with short spines. The preabdomen, the front portion of the body, was narrow with axial furrows, while the postabdomen was narrow. The telson was a curved spine. 1955. Merostomata. ''Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology, Part P Arthropoda 2, Chelicerata'', P34-P35. Genera * Order Eurypte ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Mixopterus Kiaeri
''Mixopterus'' is a genus of eurypterid, an extinct group of aquatic arthropods. Fossils of ''Mixopterus'' have been discovered in deposits from Late Silurian age, and have been referred to several different species. Fossils have been recovered from two continents; Europe and North America.Dunlop, J. A., Penney, D. & Jekel, D. 2015. A summary list of fossil spiders and their relatives. In World Spider Catalog. Natural History Museum Bern, online at http://wsc.nmbe.ch, version 18.5 http://www.wsc.nmbe.ch/resources/fossils/Fossils18.5.pdf (PDF). Description ''Mixopterus'' was a medium-sized predatory eurypterid. The largest species, ''M. simonsoni'', reached lengths of 75 cm (29.5 in). It was characterised by a robust exoskeleton with scattered tubercles or semicircular scales. The prosoma (head) was subquadrate, protruding antemedially. The chelicerae (claws in front of the mouth) were small. The two first pairs of legs of ''Mixopterus'' (appendages II and III) were highly spec ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Mixopterus
''Mixopterus'' is a genus of eurypterid, an extinct group of aquatic arthropods. Fossils of ''Mixopterus'' have been discovered in deposits from Late Silurian age, and have been referred to several different species. Fossils have been recovered from two continents; Europe and North America.Dunlop, J. A., Penney, D. & Jekel, D. 2015. A summary list of fossil spiders and their relatives. In World Spider Catalog. Natural History Museum Bern, online at http://wsc.nmbe.ch, version 18.5 http://www.wsc.nmbe.ch/resources/fossils/Fossils18.5.pdf (PDF). Description ''Mixopterus'' was a medium-sized predatory eurypterid. The largest species, ''M. simonsoni'', reached lengths of 75 cm (29.5 in). It was characterised by a robust exoskeleton with scattered tubercles or semicircular scales. The prosoma (head) was subquadrate, protruding antemedially. The chelicerae (claws in front of the mouth) were small. The two first pairs of legs of ''Mixopterus'' (appendages II and III) were highly specia ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Pterygotioidea
Pterygotioidea (the name deriving from the type genus ''Pterygotus'', meaning "winged one") is a superfamily of eurypterids, an extinct group of aquatic arthropods. Pterygotioids were the most derived members of the infraorder Diploperculata and the sister group of the adelophthalmoid eurypterids. The group includes the basal and small hughmilleriids, the larger and specialized slimonids and the famous pterygotids which were equipped with robust and powerful cheliceral claws. Though the more primitive hughmilleriids were small, '' Hughmilleria wangi'' being the smallest of all pterygotioids at just in length, later members of the group, particularly in the Pterygotidae, would become the largest known arthropods to ever exist with several genera surpassing in length. Among all currently recognized eurypterid clades, the Pterygotioidea is the most diverse, containing over 50 species in 10 genera. With the number of recognized eurypterid species being around 250, pterygotio ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


Megalograptidae
Megalograptidae are a family of eurypterids, an extinct group of chelicerate arthropods commonly known as "sea scorpions". The megalograptids were likely the first major successful group of eurypterids, evidenced by a Late Ordovician radiation. All known members of the Megalograptidea are from the Late Ordovician of Laurentia with the exception of the large ''Pentecopterus'' from the Middle Ordovician. Description Megalograptids are characterized by large exoskeletons with ovate to triangular scales. The prosoma (head) is subquadrate, with a tonguelike anterior process bearing marginal spines, and compound eyes on the top front of the head. The chelicerae (claws in front of the mouth) are small and short. The first and third pairs of walking legs are short, with diverging or closely spaced spines. The second pair of walking legs is enormously developed, with long paired spines. The fourth pair of walking legs are nearly spineless. The preabdomen, the front portion of the body, is ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Lanarkopterus
''Lanarkopterus'' is a genus of prehistoric eurypterid with one recognised species, ''Lanarkopterus dolichoschelus''. ''Lanarkopterus'' was long seen as a species of the closely related '' Mixopterus'', though more complete specimens discovered in the 1960s determined that it differed in several aspects, enough to warrant a separate genus. Specimens of the genus have been recovered from deposits of Late Silurian age in Scotland. Description ''Lanarkopterus'' was a small to moderately large (ranging in size from less than 10 centimeters to over 30 centimeters) mixopterid eurypterid that like its close relative '' Mixopterus'' appeared almost scorpion-like with a broad and trilobed preabdomen, a narrow and tapering postabdomen and a sharped and curved telsonic spine. History of discovery Specimens of ''Lanarkopterus'' were first noted by Peach and Horne (1899) in the Ludlowian fish beds of the Lesmahagow and Hagshaw Hills Silurian inliers in Ayrshire and Lanarkshire, Scotland ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]  


picture info

Chelicerate
The subphylum Chelicerata (from New Latin, , ) constitutes one of the major subdivisions of the phylum Arthropoda. It contains the sea spiders, horseshoe crabs, and arachnids (including harvestmen, scorpions, spiders, solifuges, ticks, and mites, among many others), as well as a number of extinct lineages, such as the eurypterids (sea scorpions) and chasmataspidids. The Chelicerata originated as marine animals in the Middle Cambrian period; the first confirmed chelicerate fossils, belonging to '' Sanctacaris'', date from 508 million years ago. The surviving marine species include the four species of xiphosurans (horseshoe crabs), and possibly the 1,300 species of pycnogonids (sea spiders), if the latter are indeed chelicerates. On the other hand, there are over 77,000 well-identified species of air-breathing chelicerates, and there may be about 500,000 unidentified species. Like all arthropods, chelicerates have segmented bodies with jointed limbs, all covered ...
[...More Info...]      
[...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]