Phacopina

Life-forms

Superregnum: Eukaryota
Cladus: Unikonta
Cladus: Opisthokonta
Cladus: Holozoa
Regnum: Animalia
Subregnum: Eumetazoa
Cladus: Bilateria
Cladus: Nephrozoa
Cladus: Protostomia
Cladus: Ecdysozoa
Cladus: Panarthropoda
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: †Trilobitomorpha
Classis: †Trilobita
Ordo: †Phacopida
Subordo: †Phacopina
Superfamiliae: †Acastoidea – †Dalmanitoidea – †Phacopoidea

Name
Phacopina Salter, 1864

The Phacopina[1] comprise a suborder of the trilobite order Phacopida. Species belonging to the Phacopina lived from the Lower Ordovician (Tremadocian) through the end of the Upper Devonian (Famennian).[2] The one unique feature that distinguishes Phacopina from all other trilobites are the very large, separately set lenses without a common cornea of the compound eye.
Habitat

As far as currently known, all Phacopina species were marine bottom-dwellers.[2]
Origin

The Early Ordovician genus Gyrometopus (superfamily Dalmanitoidea, family Diaphanometopidae) is probably close to the common ancestor of the Phacopina. Gyrometopus is phacopid in appearance, but a rostral plate is present, unlike in other Phacopina. However, the rostral plate does not divide the cephalic doublure into a left and right section, but instead the rostral suture defines a semicircle in the frontal ¾ of the doublure.[3]
Description
Zeliszkella torrubiae, a dalmanitid, exhibiting 10 thorax segments

The eyes (if present) consist of very large (0.07mm in Tricopelta breviceps to 0.5mm in Phacops rana), separately set lenses without a common cornea (so called schizochroal eyes). However, some Phacopina species lack eyes, such as the species of the genus Ductina.
Ductina vietnamica, a phacopid that lacks eyes

The natural fracture lines (sutures) of the head run along the top edges of the compound eye. From the back of the eye these cut to the side of the head (proparian) and not to the back. In front of the eye, the right and left facial sutures connect in front of the inflated glabella and consequently the free cheeks (or librigenae) are yoked as a single piece. The part of the skeleton that is ‘tucked under’ (the doublure) has no sutures crossing it to form a rostral plate.
The thorax has 11 (rarely 10) segments, the side lobes (or pleurae) are furrowed, and the articulating facets distinct.[4][5]
Systematics
Phacops rana crassituberculata, example of the Phacopoidea superfamily. Note the almost complete merger of the glabella, and the effaced pygidium
Odontochile sp., example of the Dalmanitoidea superfamily. Note the distinct terminal spine, axis and furrows in the pygidium.
A roled-up Acastoides zguilmensis, example of the Acastoidea superfamily. Note the 3 pairs of glabellar lateral lobes.

The Phacopina contain 3 superfamilies and 7 families:

Superfamily Phacopoidea

Family Phacopidae (examples: Phacops rana, Ductina vietnamica)
Family Pterygometopidae

Superfamily Dalmanitoidea

Family Dalmanitidae (examples: Dalmanites limulurus, Huntoniatonia oklahomae)
Family Prosopiscidae
Family Diaphanometopidae

Superfamily Acastoidea

Family Acastidae (examples: Coltraneia oufatenensis, Walliserops trifurcatus)
Family Calmoniidae

References

Struve, W. Suborder Phacopina, p. O461. In: Moore, R.C. (ed.). Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology. Part O – Arthropoda (Trilobitomorpha). 1959
Moore, R.C. (ed.). Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology. Part O – Arthropoda (Trilobitomorpha). 1959
Jaanusson, V. Evolutionary processes leading to the trilobite suborder Phacopina. Fossils and Strata 4:209–218, fig. 1–5. 1975
Richter, R. Crustacea (Paläontologie). 1933

Whittington, H. B. et al. Part O, Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology. Revised, Volume 1 – Trilobita – Introduction, Order Agnostida, Order Redlichiida. 1997

External links

fossilmuseum.net - various photos, some of Phacopina