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The pygidium is the posterior body part or shield of crustaceans and some arthropods, such as insects and the extinct trilobites. It contains the anus and, in females, the ovipositor. It is composed of fused body segments, sometimes with a tail, and separated from thoracic segments by an articulation.

In arachnids, the pygidium is formed by reduction of the last three opisthosomal segments to rings where there is no distinction between tergites and sternites. A pygidium is present in Palpigradi, Amblypygi, Thelyphonida, Schizomida, Ricinulei and in the extinct order Trigonotarbida. It is also present in early fossil representatives of horseshoe crabs.

Pygidium is also a superseded genus of fish of the family Trichomycteridae. Most species of this genus have been reassigned to the genus Trichomycterus.

Trilobite

The trilobite body is divided into three major sections, a cephalon with eyes, mouthparts and sensory organs such as antennae, a thorax of multiple similar segments (that in some species allowed enrollment), and a pygidium, or tail section. © Sam Gon III

In trilobites, the pygidium can range from extremely small (much smaller than the head, or cephalon) to larger than the cephalon. They can be smooth, as in order Asaphida, or spiny, as in order Lichida.

References

Shultz, J.W. (1990). Evolutionary Morphology And Phylogeny of Arachnida. Cladistics 6: 1-38.

External links

• Sam Gon III. "A guide to the Orders of Trilobites".  . Retrieved on August 23, 2005.

Wikipedia content modification information:

• This page was last modified on 18 July 2008, at 19:36.

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