The Mandibulata or mandibulates is a clade

Clade

A clade is a group consisting of a species and all its descendants. In the terms of biological systematics, a clade is a single "branch" on the "tree of life". The idea that such a "natural group" of organisms should be grouped together and given a taxonomic name is central to biological...

 of arthropod

Arthropod

An arthropod is an invertebrate animal having an exoskeleton , a segmented body, and jointed appendages. Arthropods are members of the phylum Arthropoda , and include the insects, arachnids, crustaceans, and others...

s that comprises the extant subphyla

Subphylum

In life, a subphylum is a taxonomic rank intermediate between phylum and superclass. The rank of subdivision in plants and fungi is equivalent to subphylum.Not all phyla are divided into subphyla...

 Myriapoda

Myriapoda

Myriapoda is a subphylum of arthropods containing millipedes, centipedes, and others. The group contains 13,000 species, all of which are terrestrial...

 (millipedes and others), Crustacea

Crustacean

Crustaceans form a very large group of arthropods, usually treated as a subphylum, which includes such familiar animals as crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, krill and barnacles. The 50,000 described species range in size from Stygotantulus stocki at , to the Japanese spider crab with a leg span...

 and Hexapoda

Hexapoda

The subphylum Hexapoda constitutes the largest grouping of arthropods and includes the insects as well as three much smaller groups of wingless arthropods: Collembola, Protura, and Diplura . The Collembola are very abundant in terrestrial environments...

 (insects and others). Mandibulata is currently believed to be the sister group of the clade Arachnomorpha

Arachnomorpha

Arachnomorpha Lameere 1890 is a subdivision or clade of Arthropoda, comprising the monophyletic group formed by the trilobites, other great appendage arthropods and trilobite-like families , and a diverse sister clade including the chelicerates...

, which comprises the rest of arthropods (Chelicerata

Chelicerata

The subphylum Chelicerata constitutes one of the major subdivisions of the phylum Arthropoda, and includes horseshoe crabs, scorpions, spiders and mites...

+Trilobita

Trilobite

Trilobites are a well-known fossil group of extinct marine arthropods that form the class Trilobita. The first appearance of trilobites in the fossil record defines the base of the Atdabanian stage of the Early Cambrian period , and they flourished throughout the lower Paleozoic era before...

). The mandibulates constitute the largest and most varied arthropod group.

The name Mandibulata refers to the mandibles

Mandible (arthropod)

thumb|250px|The mandibles of a [[Bull ant]]The mandible of an arthropod is either of a pair of mouthparts used for biting, cutting and holding food. Mandibles are often simply referred to as jaws. Mandibles are present in the extant subphyla Myriapoda , Crustacea and Hexapoda...

 or jaw

Jaw

The jaw is any opposable articulated structure at the entrance of the mouth, typically used for grasping and manipulating food. The term jaws is also broadly applied to the whole of the structures constituting the vault of the mouth and serving to open and close it and is part of the body plan of...

s, which are the characterizing feature of its member arthropods.

See also

• Myriochelata
  Myriochelata
  The Myriochelata or Paradoxopoda, is a proposed grouping of arthropods comprising the Myriapoda and Chelicerata...
  
  
• Pancrustacea
  Pancrustacea
  Pancrustacea is a clade, comprising all crustaceans and hexapods. This grouping is contrary to the Atelocerata hypothesis, in which Myriapoda and Hexapoda are sister taxa, and Crustacea are only more distantly related. As of 2010, the Pancrustacea taxon is considered well accepted. The clade has...
  
  
• Helmetia
  Helmetia
  Helmetia is an extinct genus of arthropod from the Cambrian. Its fossils have been found in the Burgess Shale and the Czech Republic.-External links:* in the Paleobiology Database...