Dibasterium

Dibasterium
Temporal range: Homerian, 425 Ma
Reconstruction of Dibasterium durgae
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Chelicerata
Clade: Euchelicerata
Genus: Dibasterium
Briggs et al., 2012
Type species
Dibasterium durgae
Briggs et al., 2012

Dibasterium is an extinct genus of euchelicerate, a group of chelicerate arthropods. Fossils of the single and type species, D. durgae, have been discovered in the Coalbrookdale Formation of the Middle Silurian period (Homerian age) in Herefordshire, England (in the United Kingdom). The name of the genus is derived from the Latin words dibamos ("on two legs") and mysterium ("mystery"), meaning "mystery on two legs" and referring to its prosomal (of the head) limbs. The species name durgae comes from Durga, a Hindu goddess with many arms.[1][2]

  1. ^ Dunlop, J. A.; Penney, D.; Jekel, D. (2020). "A summary list of fossil spiders and their relatives" (PDF). World Spider Catalog. Natural History Museum Bern. pp. 1–296.
  2. ^ Briggs, Derek E. G.; Siveter, Derek J.; Siveter, David J.; Sutton, Mark D.; Garwood, Russell J.; Legg, David (2012). "Silurian horseshoe crab illuminates the evolution of arthropod limbs". PNAS. 109 (39): 15702–15703. Bibcode:2012PNAS..10915702B. doi:10.1073/pnas.1205875109. PMC 3465403. PMID 22967511.