Planaterga is a
clade
A clade (), also known as a monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that are monophyletic – that is, composed of a common ancestor and all its lineal descendants – on a phylogenetic tree. Rather than the English term, ...
of
prosomapod euchelicerate
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 mit ...
s including several
synziphosurid genera (mainly
bunodids and
pseudoniscids) and the group
Dekatriata
Dekatriata is a clade of planatergan chelicerates including the groups Arachnida, Chasmataspidida, Eurypterid
Eurypterids, often informally called sea scorpions, are a group of extinct arthropods that form the order Eurypterida. The earliest ...
(which in turn includes
arachnid
Arachnida () is a class of joint-legged invertebrate animals (arthropods), in the subphylum Chelicerata. Arachnida includes, among others, spiders, scorpions, ticks, mites, pseudoscorpions, harvestmen, camel spiders, whip spiders and vinegaroon ...
s,
chasmataspidids and
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 yea ...
s).
Planaterga is defined by the opisthosoma with tergites broadest at third or fourth and lacking enlarged axial nodes, carapace (prosomal dorsal shield) with reduced genal spines, as well as somite VII (first opisthosomal segment) with reduced appendages and microtergite.
References
Middle Ordovician first appearances
{{Chelicerata-stub