predominantly two spines on each podomere and with the tipmost segment having a single spine. The last two segments are often indistinguishable and give the appearance of a single segment having three spines. They are used both for walking and for food capture. The next pair (Appendage V) is the most leg-like of all appendages, longer than the first three pairs and are mostly spineless except at the tipmost segments. The last pair (Appendage VI) are two broad paddle-like legs used for swimming. The coxae of Appendage VI are broad and flat, resembling an 'ear'. The ophisthosoma (the abdomen) is composed of 12 segments, each consisting of a fused upper plate (tergite) and bottom plate (sternite). It is further subdivided in two ways. Based on the width and structure of each segment, they can be divided into the broad preabdomen (segments 1 to 7) and the narrow postabdomen (segments 8 to 12). The preabdomen is the broader segments of the anterior portion of the ophisthosoma while the postabdomen are the last five segments of the Eurypterus body. Each of the segments of the postabdomen contain lateral flattened protrusions known as the epimera with the exception of the last needle-like (styliform) part of the body known as the telson. The segment immediately preceding the telson (which also has the largest epimera of the postabdomen) is known as the pretelson. An alternative way to divide the ophisthosoma is by function. It can also be divided into the mesosoma (segments 1 to 6), and the metasoma (segments 7 to 12). The mesosoma contains the gills and reproductive organs of Eurypterus. Its ventral segments are overlaid by appendage-derived plates known as Blatfüsse (singular Blatfuss, German for "sheet foot"). Protected within which are the branchial chambers which contain the respiratory organs of Eurypterus. The metasoma, meanwhile, do not possess Blatfüsse. Some authors incorrectly use mesosoma and preabdomen interchangeably, as with metasoma and postabdomen. The main respiratory organs of Eurypterus were what seems to be book gills, located in branchial chambers within the segments of the mesosoma. They may have been used for underwater respiration. They are composed of several layers of thin tissue stacked in such a way as to resemble the pages of a book, hence the name. In addition, they also possessed five pairs of oval-shaped areas covered with microscopic projections on the ceiling of the second branchial chambers within the mesosoma, immediately