Thysanura is the nowdeprecated name of what was, for over a century, recognised as anorder in theclassInsecta. The two constituent groups within the former order, theArchaeognatha (jumping bristletails) and theZygentoma (silverfish andfirebrats), share several characteristics, such as of having three longcaudal filaments, the lateral ones being thecerci, while the one between (telson) is amedial cerciform appendage, specifically anepiproct. They are also both wingless, and have bodies covered with fine scales, rather like the scales of the practically unrelatedLepidoptera. In the late 20th century, it was recognized that the two suborders were notsister taxa, therefore Thysanura was paraphyletic, and the two suborders were each raised to the status of an independent monophyletic order, with Archaeognatha sister taxon to theDicondylia, including the Zygentoma.[1][2]
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Although the group Thysanura is no longer recognized, the name still appears in some published material.[3] Another name used to separate the two groups fromwinged insects isApterygota.
The name Thysanura, first applied to the group byPierre André Latreille,[4] was derived from the Greek θυσάνος,thysanos forfringe,tassel,bristle and οὐρά,oura for "tail", a reference to the three fanned out caudal filaments. This etymology is consistent with the English word "bristletail", which is thecommon name for severalhexapod species, not all of which fell within Thysanura.[5]
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