Artiopoda - Ptychopariida - Phylacteridae
Parent taxon: Ptychopariida according to B. D. E. Chatterton 2020
See also Adrain 2011 and Jell and Adrain 2002
Sister taxa: Acrocephalitidae, Alokistocaridae, Amphorella, Atratebiinae, Bifodina, Bolaspididae, Bulnibarbi, Bvalbardites, Catillicephalidae, Chondrastaulina, Chuangiformis, Cliffiidae, Conococheaquea, Conocoryphidae, Conokephalinidae, Crepicephalidae, Diceratocephalidae, Elviniidae, Harpina, Indiligens, Jamrogiidae, Kazelina, Kingstoniidae, Kirengelia, Lisaniidae, Lonchocephalidae, Lorenzellidae, Marjumiidae, Meniscocorphye, Meniscocoryphe, Menomoniidae, Neoanomocerella, Nepeidae, Norwoodiidae, Olenina, Onchonotopsidae, Papyriaspididae, Plethopeltidae, Proasaphiscidae, Propeltura, Ptychopariidae, Ptychopariina, Ptychoparoides, Raymondinidae, Shumardiidae, Solenopleuracea, Solenopleuridae, Tricrepicephalidae, Xianquianaspis, Yuehsieszella
Subtaxa: Aphelotoxon Cliffia Drabia Phylacterus Westonaspis
Ecology: fast-moving low-level epifaunal carnivore
Distribution:
• Ordovician of Canada (2: Newfoundland and Labrador collections)
• Skullrockian of United States (1: Texas)
• Taoyuanian of the Russian Federation (1)
• Cambrian of Canada (17: Alberta, British Columbia, Newfoundland and Labrador, Yukon), United States (94: Arkansas, Indiana, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, Nevada and Utah, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Wyoming)
Total: 115 collections including 163 occurrences