Deuterostome

Deuterostomes (from Greek: lit. 'mouth second') are bilaterian animals of the superphylum Deuterostomia (/ˌdjuːtərəˈstoʊmi.ə/), typically characterized by their anus forming before the mouth during embryonic development. Deuterostomia is further divided into 4 phyla: Chordata, Echinodermata, Hemichordata, and the extinct Vetulicolia known from Cambrian fossils. The extinct clade Cambroernida is also thought to be a member of Deuterostomia.

In deuterostomy, the developing embryo's first opening (the blastopore) becomes the anus and cloaca, while the mouth is formed at a different site later on. This was initially the group's distinguishing characteristic, but deuterostomy has since been discovered among protostomes as well. This group is also known as enterocoelomates, because their coelom develops through enterocoely.

Deuterostomia's sister clade is Protostomia, animals that develop mouth first and whose digestive tract development is more varied. Protostomia includes the ecdysozoans (panarthropods, nematoids, penis worms, mud dragons etc.) and spiralians (mollusks, annelids, flatworms, rotifers, arrow worms, etc.), as well as the extinct Kimberella. Together with Protostomia and their outgroup Xenacoelomorpha, they constitute the large infrakingdom Bilateria, i.e. animals with bilateral symmetry and three germ layers.