Kelatoida

Kelatoida is a taxonomic term that has appeared in a small number of scientific and scholarly writings to designate a proposed clade or grouping within the animal kingdom. It does not have a universally accepted definition, and it is not recognized as a formal taxon by major databases or contemporary taxonomic authorities. Because usage has varied, Kelatoida has largely been treated as an obscure or historical term rather than a valid, current clade in modern systematics.

Taxonomic status and composition are unclear because there is no stable concept of what Kelatoida includes. In the few sources that discuss it, the term has been described in different and sometimes contradictory ways, with no consensus on membership or rank. As a result, there are no universally agreed diagnostic traits or morphological synapomorphies that define Kelatoida, and researchers disagree about whether any coherent group actually exists under this name.

History and current status: Kelatoida has appeared in older or non-mainstream publications and has largely fallen out of use in contemporary taxonomy. When it is mentioned, it is usually as an example of historical attempts to name broad or speculative groupings rather than as a defined, widely accepted clade.

See also: Taxonomy, Phylogenetics, Taxonomic nomenclature, Groups of uncertain placement.