Ameridelphia is traditionally a superorder that includes all marsupials living in the Americas except for the monito del monte (Dromiciops). It is now regarded as a paraphyletic group.
Orders
The orders within this group are listed below:
- Order Didelphimorphia (108 species)
- Family Didelphidae: opossums
- Order Paucituberculata (7 species)
- Family Caenolestidae: shrew opossums
Evolution and phylogenetics
Modern marsupials are now understood to be an originally South American lineage that later reached Australia and diversified there in a massive adaptive radiation.