Strabopidae is the only family of the order Strabopida, an extinct group of arthropods known from the Cambrian period.[1]
| Strabopidae
| |
|---|---|
| |
| Fossil of Strabops thacheri. | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| Phylum: | |
| (unranked): | |
| Order: | †Strabopida Hou & Bergström, 1997 |
| Family: | †Strabopidae Gerhardt, 1932 |
| Type species | |
| †Strabops thacheri Beecher, 1901 | |
| Genera | |
The order Strabopida contains three valid genera and one doubtful, Khankaspis, Paleomerus, Parapaleomerus and Strabops, all assigned in the family Strabopidae.[2] Previously, it also contained the genera Caryon, Lemoneites and Neostrabops, but after a study, they were reassigned as a trilobite, a glyptocystitid echinoderm and a cheloniellid arthropod, respectively.[2]
Paleomeridae was also previously included as a family, but after the discovery of a fourth Paleomerus specimen and its study, Paleomeridae was synonymized into Strabopidae.[3] Although often suggested to be closely related to aglaspidids due to their similar morphology, their exact phylogenetic placement is uncertain due to the poor preservation of all known strabopids. A 2013 attempt to place them in a phylogenetic analysis recovered them as part of a polytomy with megacheirans, marrellomorphs, crustaceans and artiopodans.[1] Still, strabopids are often classified as part of the clade Arachnomorpha.[3] In fact, Dunlop & Selden (1998) defined Paleomerus as "perhaps the best model of a primitive arachnomorph".[4]
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