Opisthosoma
thumb|right|180px|Arachnid anatomy: (1) four pairs of arthropod leg|legs (2) prosoma (cephalothorax) (3) opisthosoma (abdomen)The opisthosoma is the posterior part of the body in some arthropods, behind the prosoma (cephalothorax). It is a distinctive feature of the subphylum Chelicerata (arachnids, horseshoe crabs and others). It is similar in most respects to an abdomen (and is often referred to as such).
Article
2 sectionsContents
- Segments
- References
thumb|right|180px|Arachnid anatomy: (1) four pairs of arthropod leg|legs (2) prosoma (cephalothorax) (3) opisthosoma (abdomen)The opisthosoma is the posterior part of the body in some arthropods, behind the prosoma (cephalothorax). It is a distinctive feature of the subphylum Chelicerata (arachnids, horseshoe crabs and others). It is similar in most respects to an abdomen (and is often referred to as such).
==Segments== thumb|left|Heterometrus laoticus|Asian forest scorpion The number of segments and appendages on the opisthosoma vary. Scorpions have 13 segments, but the first is only seen during its embryological development. Other arachnids have fewer; harvestmen, for instance, have only ten.