Myriapoda
| Myriapods Temporal range: | |
|---|---|
| Representatives of the four extant myriapod classes. Clockwise from top left: Chilopoda, Diplopoda, Symphyla, and Pauropoda. | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Clade: | Mandibulata |
| Subphylum: | Myriapoda Latreille, 1802 |
| Classes | |
Myriapods (from Ancient Greek μυρίος (muríos) 'countless' and πούς (poús) 'foot') are the members of subphylum Myriapoda, containing arthropods such as millipedes and centipedes. The group contains about 13,000 species, all of them terrestrial.
Although molecular evidence and similar fossils suggests a diversification in the Cambrian Period, the oldest known fossil record of myriapods dates between the Late Silurian and Early Devonian, with Pneumodesmus preserving the earliest known evidence of air-breathing on land. Other early myriapod fossil species around the similar time period include Kampecaris obanensis and Archidesmus sp. The phylogenetic classification of myriapods is still debated.
The scientific study of myriapods is myriapodology, and those who study myriapods are myriapodologists.