ZEB 202: General Invertebrate Zoology II

PHYLUM: ARTHROPODA
Arthropod n. [Gr. arthron, joint; pous, foot]

A phylum of invertebrates that contains the chitinous segmented, exoskeletoned, jointed-legged

animals, such as centipedes, millipedes, insects, crustaceans, spiders, scorpions, and many other

less well-known types. Arthropods range in distribution from the deep sea to mountain peaks, in

size from the king crab with its 12-foot arm span to microscopic insects and crustaceans. Despite

this unbelievable diversity, the basic body plan of arthropods is fairly constant. Arthropods have

a stiff cuticle made largely of chitin and proteins, forming an exoskeleton that may or may not be

further stiffened with calcium carbonate. They have segmented bodies and show various patterns

of segment fusion (tagmosis) to form integrated units (heads, abdomens, and so on). The phylum

takes its name from its distinctive jointed appendages, which may be modified in a number of

ways to form antennae, mouthparts, and reproductive organs.

General characteristics
1) Bilaterally symmetrical (in most cases).
2) Body has more than two cell layers, tissues and organs.
3) Body cavity a true coelom.
4) Most possesses a through straight gut with an anus (in most cases).
5) Body possesses 3 to 400+ pairs of jointed legs.
6) Body possesses an external skeleton (in most cases).
7) Body is divided in 2 or 3 sections.
8) Nervous system includes a brain and ganglia.
9) Possesses a respiratory system in the form of tracheae and spiracles (in most cases).
10) Possesses an open or lacunnar circulatory system with a simple heart, one or more arteries,
and no veins, (in most cases).
11) Reproduction normally sexual and gonochoristic, but can be parthenogenetic.

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12) Feed on everything.
13) Live everywhere.
 Arthropodology - the study of arthropods, which includes

 Arachnology - the study of spiders and other arachnids

 Entomology - the study of insects

 Carcinology - the study of crustaceans

 Myriapodology - the study of centipedes, millipedes, and other myriapods

Organization
Arthropods are organized at the organ system level of the body. This means that different organ

systems within their bodies have a division of labor.

Arthropods are also characterized by:

 Jointed appendages: Arthropods have jointed appendages.

 Chitinous exoskeleton: Arthropods have a chitinous exoskeleton.

 Three body segments: Arthropods have three body segments: the head, thorax, and

abdomen. In some arthropods, the head and thorax are joined together as a

cephalothorax.

 Wings: The thorax segment of arthropods usually has two pairs of wings.

 Legs: The thorax segment of arthropods usually has three pairs of legs.

Arthropods are the most diverse phylum in the animal kingdom, making up about two-thirds of

all animal species. They are found all over the world.

Arthropods are said to have evolved from annelids, with which they show certain similarities.

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 1. Both groups show metameric segmentation, the segments of arthropods bearing

appendages which may be compared with the parapodia of polychaetes.

2. However, in many arthropods the basic metameric pattern in which every segment

performs every function is considerably obscured: groups of segments are specialized to

perform functions for the entire animal.

3. These groups are known as tagmata (singular, tagma) and the whole process is

tagmatization. 4. Some degree of tagmatization is found in all annelids, but it occurs to a far

greater extent in the arthropods and is an important evolutionary trend. One of the advantages

of metamerism is the opportunity it provides for specialization of this kind.

4. Other points of similarity between annelids and arthropods include the structure of the

central nervous system, and to some extent the arrangement of the circulatory system.

5. Arthropods have a dorsal tubular heart, which may be compared with the annelid

contractile dorsal blood vessel. Paired segmental coelomic compartments develop in the

young arthropod but are greatly reduced in the adult by the development of a blood-filled

space, the haemocoel (body cavity formed by blood sinuses, often derived from the

blastocoel) as the major body cavity.

Classification
The arthropods evolved along four main lines, which most zoologists recognize as 4 distinct
Subphyla. The Phylum Arthropoda may be classified, based on their diversity of appendages,
lifestyles, and other features

1. Subphylum Trilobita – the only arthropod where all members are extinct

2. Subphylum Chelicerata – horseshoe crabs, spiders, ticks, mites, and some extinct groups

3. Subphylum Crustacea – crabs, lobsters, shrimps, barnacles

4. Subphylum Uniramia – centipedes, millipedes. Insects

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Table 1: Subphyla and classes of the phylum Arthropoda
Subphylum Classe( s )
Trilobitomorpha (Primitive arthropods)

Chelicerata Merostomata Arachnida · Pycnogonida

Crustacea Cephalocarida Branchiopoda Ostracoda

Uniramia Insecta Chilopoda Diplopoda

SUBPHYLUM TRILOBITA (TRILOBITOMORPHA)

An extinct group of arthropods now represented by fossils in which the body was molded

longitudinally into three lobes, hence the name Trilobitomorpha. The body is divided into three

parts:

– Cephalon (head); a single plate made up of several fused segments

– Thorax; consists of a number of segments hinged together

– Pygidium (tail); segmented, but fused together into a single plate.

They had a pair of antennae and all the appendages on the post-antennal somites were of a

common type. They were marine arthropods and were very numerous in the Cambrian and

Silurian but became extinct by the secondary period. Their s ize ranges from a few millimeters up to

75 centimeters. e. g. Olenus, etc.