What is "ecdysozoa"

Ecdysozoa is a group of protostome animals, including Arthropoda ( insects, chelicerata, crustaceans, and myriapods), nematoda, and several smaller phyla. They were first defined by Aguinaldo et al. in 1997, based mainly on phylogenetic trees constructed using 18S ribosomal RNA genes. A large study in 2008 by Dunn et al. strongly supported the Ecdysozoa as a clade, that is, a group consisting of a common ancestor and all its descendants.

The group is also supported by morphological characters, and includes all animals that shed their exoskeleton (see ecdysis).

The group was initially contested by a significant minority of biologists. Some argued for groupings based on more traditional taxonomic techniques, while others contested the interpretation of the molecular data.