noun
definition
The dorsal portion of an articulate animal's arthromere or somite.
Examples of tergites in a Sentence
The tergites of this region and those of the following region, the metasoma, are fused to form a second or posterior carapace in Limulus, whilst remaining free in Scorpio.
A telsonic tergal shield of greater or less size is always present, which may be imperfectly divided into well-marked but immovable tergites indicating incompletely differentiated somites.
On the other hand, it may well be doubted whether the pygidial or posterior carapace is primarily due to a fusion of the tergites of somites which were previously movable and well developed.
In Arachnida the highest forms exhibit a fusion of the tergites of five post-oral somites to form one continuous carapace united with the terga of the two prosthomeres.
This gives seven somites to the Hexapod's head, the tergites of which are fused to form a cephalic carapace or box.
The tergites, or chitinized dorsal halves of the body rings, are fused to form a " prosomatic carapace," or carapace of the prosoma, in both Limulus and Scorpio (see figs, 7 and 8).