Rhynchonellata - Orthida - Plectorthidae
Parent taxon: Plectorthoidea according to A. Williams et al. 2000
See also Alikhova 1953, Bassett and Cocks 1974, Benedetto 2003, Howe 1988, Jin and Chatterton 1997, Macomber 1970, Mitchell 1977, Neuman 1964, Oraspold 1956, Oraspold 1959, Owen and Harper 1982, Phleger 1933, Popov et al. 2000, Potter 1990, Rõõmusoks 1964, Rubel 1961 and Wright 1964
Sister taxa: Apatoskenidioides, Chilcorthidae, Cremnorthidae, Cyclocoeliidae, Eoorthidae, Euorthisinidae, Finkelnburgiidae, Giraldiellidae, Lebediorthis, Nanorthidae, Phragmorthidae, Platystrophiidae, Ranorthidae, Rhactorthidae, Tasmanorthidae, Wangyuiidae
Subtaxa: Apollonorthis Ashinaorthis Atlantida Corineorthis Desmorthis Doleroides Hebertella Irhirea Lipanorthis Mimella Nanorthis Oligorthis Orthostrophiinae Paterorthis Platystrophiinae Platystrophinae Plectorthinae Plectorthis Pseudomimella Schizophorella Severginella
Ecology: stationary epifaunal suspension feeder
Distribution:
• Silurian of China (1 collection), the Czech Republic (6), United States (1: Illinois)
• Dobrotivian of France (1), Morocco (1), Portugal (3), Spain (6)
• Chazyan of Canada (28: Northwest Territories, Ontario, Quebec), United States (46: New York, Tennessee, Virginia)
• Whiterockian of United States (29: California, Minnesota, Nevada, Oklahoma, Virginia)
• Dawan of China (6)
• Arenigian of Argentina (2)
• Arenig of Argentina (8), Bolivia (3), China (34), the Russian Federation (2), Sweden (5), the United Kingdom (2), United States (5: Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, Texas)
• Ordovician to Silurian of Canada (4: Québec)
• Ordovician of Algeria (1), Argentina (2), Australia (24), Austria (1), Canada (92: British Columbia, Newfoundland, Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Nunvait, Ontario, Quebec, Québec), China (30), Estonia (3), Ireland (1), Kazakhstan (36), Morocco (2), Myanmar (1), Norway (6), Portugal (2), the Russian Federation (37), Spain (2), Sweden (8), the United Kingdom (22), United States (907: Alaska, California, Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia), Venezuela (1)
• Tremadoc of Argentina (13), Bolivia (1), China (8), Colombia (1), the Czech Republic (2), France (2), the Russian Federation (8), Sweden (2), United States (2: Utah)
• Skullrockian of Canada (1: British Columbia)
• Ibexian of Canada (1: Alberta), United States (2: Nevada)
• Cambrian to Ordovician of the Russian Federation (1)
• Cambrian of Canada (2: Alberta, Newfoundland and Labrador)
Total: 1417 collections including 1613 occurrences