The Malpighiales comprise one of the largest orders of flowering plants, containing about 16,000 species, about 7.8% of the eudicots. The order is very diverse, containing plants as different as the willow, violet, poinsettia, and coca plant, and are hard to recognize except with molecular phylogenetic evidence. It is not part of any of the classification systems based only on plant morphology. Molecular clock calculations estimate the origin of stem group Malpighiales at around 100 million years ago (Mya) and the origin of crown group Malpighiales at about 90 Mya.
Characiformes is an order of ray-finned fish, comprising the characins and their allies. Grouped in 18 recognized families, more than 2000 different species are described, including the well-known piranha and tetras.
Charadriiformes is a diverse order of small to medium-large birds. It includes about 350 species and has members in all parts of the world. Most Charadriiformes live near water and eat invertebrates or other small animals; however, some are pelagic (seabirds), some occupy deserts and a few are found in thick forest.
Diprotodontia is an order of about 125 species of marsupial mammals including the kangaroos, wallabies, possums, koala, wombats, and many others. Extinct diprotodonts include the rhinoceros-sized Diprotodon, and Thylacoleo, the so-called "marsupial lion".
Ptilodontoidea is a group of extinct mammals from the Northern Hemisphere. They were generally small, somewhat rodent-like creatures of the extinct order Multituberculata.
Cimolodontidae is a family of fossil mammals within the extinct order Multituberculata. Representatives are known from the Upper Cretaceous and Paleocene of North America. There is some doubt as to whether Cimolodon is within this taxon. If not, the name of the family would still be valid. The family Cimolodontidae was named by Othniel Charles Marsh in 1889 and is part of the suborder Cimolodonta within the superfamily Ptilodontoidea.
Cimolomyidae is a family of fossil mammal within the extinct order Multituberculata. Representatives are known from the Upper Cretaceous and the Paleocene of North America and perhaps Mongolia. The family is part of the suborder Cimolodonta. Other than that, their systematic relationships are hard to define. Some authors have placed the taxon within Taeniolabidoidea. Kielan-Jaworowska and Hurum (2001) expressly don't.
The Mygalomorphae or mygalomorphs are an infraorder of spiders. The name is derived from the Greek mugalē, meaning "shrew", plus morphē meaning form or shape. An older name for the group is Orthognatha, derived from the orientation of the fangs which point straight down and do not cross each other.
Neoptera is a classification group that includes most parts of the winged insects, specifically those that can flex their wings over their abdomens. This is in contrast with the more basal orders of winged insects, which are unable to flex their wings in this way.
Vampyromorphida is an order of cephalopods comprising one known extant species and many extinct taxa. Physically, they somewhat resemble octopuses, but the eight arms are united by a web of skin, and two smaller cilia are also present.
The Adephaga, with more than 40,000 recorded species in 10 families, are a suborder of highly specialized beetles and the second-largest suborder of the order Coleoptera. Members of this suborder are adephagans, a term which notably include ground beetles, tiger beetles, predacious diving beetles, and whirligig beetles. The majority of the species belongs to the family of carabids, or ground beetles (Carabidae).
Ensifera is a suborder of insects that includes the various types of crickets and their allies including: true crickets, camel crickets, bush crickets or katydids, grigs, wetas and Cooloola monsters. It and the suborder Caelifera make up the order Orthoptera. Ensifera is believed to be a more ancient group than Caelifera, with its origins in the Carboniferous period, the split having occurred at the end of the Permian period. Unlike the Caelifera, the Ensifera contain numerous members that are partially carnivorous, feeding on other insects as well as plants.
The superorder Elopomorpha contains a variety of types of fishes that range from typical silvery-colored species, such as the tarpons and ladyfishes of the Elopiformes and the bonefishes of the Albuliformes, to the long and slender, smooth-bodied eels of the Anguilliformes. The one characteristic uniting this group of fishes is they all have leptocephalus larvae, which are unique to the Elopomorpha. No other fishes have this type of larvae.
Stylonurina is one of two suborders of eurypterids, a group of extinct arthropods commonly known as "sea scorpions". Members of the suborder are collectively and informally known as "stylonurine eurypterids" or "stylonurines". They are known from deposits primarily in Europe and North America, but also in Siberia.
The Chironomoidea are a superfamily within the order Diptera, suborder Nematocera, infraorder Culicomorpha. This superfamily contains the families Chironomidae, Ceratopogonidae, Simuliidae, and Thaumaleidae. One of the more important characteristics used to define them is the form of the larval mouthparts.
The name Prosorrhyncha is a name for a suborder of Hemiptera, comprising a grouping of the traditional taxon "Heteroptera" plus its sister taxon, the family Peloridiidae. There is no agreement on the status of this taxon, as there are two competing classifications regarding this branch of the Hemiptera; while some hemipterists follow this classification, it has by no means been accepted universally. See the Heteroptera article for the detailed discussion, and a comparison of the two taxoboxes.
Notioprogonia is a suborder of the extinct mammalian order Notoungulata and includes two families, Henricosborniidae and Notostylopidae.
