Chelicerata
Sign in to saveThe subphylum Chelicerata (from Neo-Latin, , ) constitutes one of the major subdivisions of the phylum Arthropoda. Chelicerates include 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.
AI overview
Chelicerata is a major group of arthropods that includes living animals like spiders, scorpions, mites, ticks, horseshoe crabs, and sea spiders, as well as extinct relatives such as ancient sea scorpions. This group matters because it represents one of the largest and most diverse subdivisions of arthropods, with members found in nearly every environment on Earth and playing important roles in ecosystems.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Article
18 sectionsContents
- Description
- Segmentation and cuticle
- Chelicerae and pedipalps
- Body cavities and circulatory systems
- Respiratory systems
- Feeding and digestion
- Excretion
- Nervous system
- Senses
- Reproduction
- Evolutionary history
- Fossil record
- Relationships with other arthropods
- Major sub-groups
- Diversity
- Interaction with humans
- References
- Bibliography
The subphylum Chelicerata (from Neo-Latin, , ) constitutes one of the major subdivisions of the phylum Arthropoda. Chelicerates include 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.
Chelicerata split from Mandibulata by the mid-Cambrian, as evidenced by stem-group chelicerates like Habeliida and Mollisonia present by this time. 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.