Deiphoninae

From Palaeos

Deiphoninae Raymond 1913

Parent taxa: Trilobita, Phacopida, Cheiruridae.

Time: Upper Lower Ordovician to Upper Silurian.

Distribution': Europe, North America, Asia and Australia.

Habitat: Warm-water palaeozooprovinces.

Mode of life: Vagrant benthos or nektobenthos (but see page on Deiphon for further details).

Comments: Deiphoninae were small, with swollen glabellae and reduced genae and thorax. They were regarded by Přibyl et al. (1985) as derived through progenesis from the larger Cheirurinae, and most representatives possess characters associated with progenesis such as profixigenal and prolibrigenal spines, unseparated last thoracic segment firmly connected with the pygidium and often a higher number of rings on the pygidial axis.

Along with Sphaerexochinae and Cheirurinae, Deiphoninae were one of the few subfamilies of Cheiruridae to cross the Ordovician/Silurian boundary.

Phylogeny

<==Deiphoninae
   |--Ovalocephalus Koroleva 1959
   |    |--*O. kelleri Koroleva 1959
   |    `--O. globosus Abdullaev 1972
   `--+--Deiphon Barrande 1850
      |    |--*D. forbesi Barrande 1850
      |    |--D. americanum Weller 1907
      |    |--D. angelini Warburg 1925
      |    |--D. barrandei Whittard 1934
      |    |--D. braybrooki Perry & Chatterton 1979
      |    |    |--D. b. braybrooki
      |    |    `--D. b. bainsi Chatterton & Perry 1984
      |    |--D. brevispina Ramsköld 1983
      |    |--D. dikellum Whittard 1934
      |    |--D. ellipticum Ramsköld 1983
      |    |--D. fleur Šnajdr 1980
      |    |--D. globifrons Angelin 1854
      |    |--D. grovesi Chatterton & Perry 1984
      |    |--D. longifrons Whittard 1934
      |    |--D. pisum Foerste 1894
      |    |--D. pospisili Přibyl & Vaněk 1984
      |    |--D. salmoni Chatterton & Perry 1984
      |    |--D. snodensis Ramsköld 1983
      |    `--D. sphaericum Ramsköld 1983
      |--Onycopyge Woodward 1880
      |    |--*O. liversidgei Woodward 1880
      |    `--O. clarkei (Koninck 1877)
      `--Sphaerocoryphe

* Type species of genus indicated

References

Přibyl, A., J. Vaněk & I. Pek. 1985. Phylogeny and taxonomy of family Cheiruridae (Trilobita). Acta Universitatis Palackianae Olomucensis Facultas Rerum Naturalium Geographica-Geologica XXIV 83: 107-193.

Credits

intro CKT070907; phylogeny CKT070122