Timeline of eurypterid research

This timeline of eurypterid research is a chronologically ordered list of important fossil discoveries, controversies of interpretation, and taxonomic revisions of eurypterids, a group of extinct aquatic arthropods closely related to modern arachnids and horseshoe crabs that lived during the Paleozoic Era.

The scientific study of eurypterids began in the early 19th century when James E. DeKay recognized a fossil that had previously been described as that of a fish as arthropod in nature. Though DeKay erroneously believed the fossil to represent a crustacean and a missing link between trilobites and branchiopods, the fossil became the type species of first ever eurypterid to be scientifically described, Eurypterus remipes, in 1825.^[1]

Over 250 species of eurypterids in 74 recognized valid genera have been described since the discovery of Eurypterus remipes.^[2] The most recent genus to be described is Terropterus (2021) and the most recent species is its type species Terropterus xiushanensis (2021).^[3]

^ Clarke, J. K., Ruedemann R. (1912) "The Eurypterida of New York"
^ Dunlop, J. A.; Penney, D.; Jekel, D. (2015). "A summary list of fossil spiders and their relatives (version 16.0)" (PDF). World Spider Catalog.
^ Wang, Han; Dunlop, Jason A.; Gai, Zhikun; Lei, Xiaojie; Jarzembowski, Edmund A.; Wang, Bo (2021). "First mixopterid eurypterids (Arthropoda: Chelicerata) from the Lower Silurian of South China". Science Bulletin. 66 (22): 2277–2280. Bibcode:2021SciBu..66.2277W. doi:10.1016/j.scib.2021.07.019. PMID 36654455.

[:2-1] Clarke, J. K., Ruedemann R. (1912) "The Eurypterida of New York"

[:17-2] Dunlop, J. A.; Penney, D.; Jekel, D. (2015). "A summary list of fossil spiders and their relatives (version 16.0)" (PDF). World Spider Catalog.

[:86-3] Wang, Han; Dunlop, Jason A.; Gai, Zhikun; Lei, Xiaojie; Jarzembowski, Edmund A.; Wang, Bo (2021). "First mixopterid eurypterids (Arthropoda: Chelicerata) from the Lower Silurian of South China". Science Bulletin. 66 (22): 2277–2280. Bibcode:2021SciBu..66.2277W. doi:10.1016/j.scib.2021.07.019. PMID 36654455.

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