Elasipodida

Sclerite of Palaeocaudina regia, from Boczarowski (2001). Scale bar = 200 µm.

Belongs within: Holothuroidea.

The Elasipodida are a group of mostly deep-sea holothuroids with a bilaterally symmetrical body pattern in which the dorsal tube feet have become modified into elongate sensory processes (Pawson 1966). Members of this group include some of the atypical species of sea cucumber, such as the 'sea pigs' of the Elpidiidae or the pelagic Pelagothuria natatrix.

<==Elasipodida
    |  i. s.: Auricularia nudibranchiata H04
    |--Pelagothuria FE66 [Pelagothuriidae P66]
    |    `--P. natatrix FE66
    |--Deimatidae B01
    |    |--Oneirophanta Théel 1882 B01
    |    `--Deima atlanticum FE66
    |--Elpidiidae MG-H11
    |    |--Scotonassa Théel 1882 B01
    |    |--Peniagone Théel 1882 B01
    |    |    `--P. diaphana Théel 1882 MG-H11
    |    `--Elpidia BK77
    |         |--E. glacialis BK77
    |         `--E. rigida H04
    |--Psychropotidae B01
    |    |--Benthodytes Théel 1882 B01
    |    |--Euphronides Théel 1882 B01
    |    |--Nectothuria Belyaev & Vinogradov 1969 B01
    |    `--Psychropotes Théel 1882 B01
    |         |--P. longicauda GD00
    |         `--P. scotiae (Vaney 1908) B01
    |--Paleochiridotidae FE66
    |    |--Rota Langenheim & Epis 1957 FE66
    |    |    |--*R. martini Langenheim & Epis 1957 FE66
    |    |    `--R. campbelli FE66
    |    `--Paleochiridota Croneis 1932 P66, FE66
    |         |--*P. plummerae Croneis 1932 FE66
    |         |--P. primaeva P66
    |         `--P. robertsoni FE66
    `--Palaeocaudina Boczarowski 2001 [Palaeocaudinidae] B01
         |--P. regia Boczarowski 2001 B01
         `--+--*P. hexagonaria (Martin 1952) [=Protocaudina hexagonaria] B01
            |--P. hannai (Croneis 1932) [=Protocaudina hannai] B01
            `--+--P. kansasensis (Hanna 1930) [=Protocaudina kansasensis] B01
               `--+--P. acmaea (Matyja 1972) [=Protocaudina acmaea] B01
                  `--+--P. herrigi (Reich 1995) [=Protocaudina herrigi] B01
                     `--Laetmogonidae B01
                          |--Bathygone Pawson 1965 B01
                          |--Benthogone abstrusa (Sluiter 1901) MG-H11
                          |--Pannychia moseleyi Théel 1882 MG-H11
                          |--Enypniastes eximia Théel 1882 MG-H11
                          `--Laetmogone Théel 1882 B01
                               |--L. fimbriata (Sluiter 1901) MG-H11
                               |--L. maculata (Théel 1879) MG-H11
                               |--L. theeli Ludwig 1894 MG-H11
                               `--L. violacea Théel 1879 MG-H11

*Type species of generic name indicated

REFERENCES

[BK77] Barel, C. D. N., & P. G. N. Kramers. 1977. A survey of the echinoderm associates of the north-east Atlantic area. Zoologische Verhandelingen 156: 1–159.

[B01] Boczarowski, A. 2001. Isolated sclerites of Devonian non-pelmatozoan echinoderms. Palaeontologia Polonica 59: 1–219.

[FE66] Frizzell, D. L., & H. Exline. 1966. Holothuroidea—fossil record. In: Moore, R. C. (ed.) Treatise on invertebrate Paleontology pt U. Echinodermata 3 vol. 2 pp. U646–U672. The Geological Society of America, Inc., and The University of Kansas Press.

[GD00] Giribet, G., D. L. Distel, M. Polz, W. Sterrer & W. C. Wheeler. 2000. Triploblastic relationships with emphasis on the acoelomates and the position of Gnathostomulida, Cycliophora, Plathelminthes, and Chaetognatha: a combined approach of 18S rDNA sequences and morphology. Systematic Biology 49: 539–562.

[H04] Haeckel, E. 1899–1904. Kunstformen der Natur. Bibliographisches Institut: Leipzig und Wien.

[MG-H11] McEnnulty, F. R., K. L. Gowlett-Holmes, A. Williams, F. Althaus, J. Fromont, G. C. B. Poore, T. D. O’Hara, L. Marsh, P. Kott, S. Slack-Smith, P. Alderslade & M. V. Kitahara. 2011. The deepwater megabenthic invertebrates on the western continental margin of Australia (100–1100 m depths): composition, distribution and novelty. Records of the Western Australian Museum Supplement 80: 1–191.

[P66] Pawson, D. L. 1966. Phylogeny and evolution of holothuroids. In: Moore, R. C. (ed.) Treatise on invertebrate Paleontology pt U. Echinodermata 3 vol. 2 pp. U641–U646. The Geological Society of America, Inc., and The University of Kansas Press.