Ascophora is an infraorder under order

Cheilostomatida Cheilostomatida, also called Cheilostomata, is an order of Bryozoa in the class Gymnolaemata. They are exclusively marine, colonial invertebrate animals. Cheilostome colonies are composed of calcium carbonate and grow on a variety of surfaces, ...

of the

Bryozoa Bryozoa (also known as the Polyzoa, Ectoprocta or commonly as moss animals) are a phylum of simple, aquatic invertebrate animals, nearly all living in sedentary colonies. Typically about long, they have a special feeding structure called a l ...

. They are now considered a synonym of Flustrina. Ascophorans are distinguished from other cheilostomes in having a completely

calcified Calcification is the accumulation of calcium salts in a body tissue. It normally occurs in the formation of bone, but calcium can be deposited abnormally in soft tissue,Miller, J. D. Cardiovascular calcification: Orbicular origins. ''Nature Mat ...

wall covering their frontal surface apart from the orifice, and possessing an

ascus An ascus (; ) is the sexual spore-bearing cell produced in ascomycete fungi. Each ascus usually contains eight ascospores (or octad), produced by meiosis followed, in most species, by a mitotic cell division. However, asci in some genera or s ...

(hence the name of the suborder). The ascus is a water-filled sac of frontal membrane opening at or near the orifice. It functions as a

hydrostatic Fluid statics or hydrostatics is the branch of fluid mechanics that studies the condition of the equilibrium of a floating body and submerged body "fluids at hydrostatic equilibrium and the pressure in a fluid, or exerted by a fluid, on an imme ...

system by allowing water into the space below the inflexible frontal wall when the zooid everts its

polypide The polypide in bryozoans encompasses most of the organs and tissues of each individual zooid. This includes the tentacles, tentacle sheath, U-shaped digestive tract, musculature and nerve cells. It is housed in the zooidal exoskeleton, which in cy ...

(feeding tentacles) by muscles pulling the frontal membrane inwards (non-ascophorans do not need this structure as their frontal wall is not calcified). The structure of this frontal wall is the basis of distinguishing the four major subdivisions of the Ascophora, each of which is, however, currently under suspicion of being polyphyletic and/or

paraphyletic In taxonomy (general), taxonomy, a group is paraphyletic if it consists of the group's most recent common ancestor, last common ancestor and most of its descendants, excluding a few Monophyly, monophyletic subgroups. The group is said to be pa ...

.Gordon, D.P. 2000. Towards a phylogeny of cheilostomes - morphological models of frontal wall/shield evolution. Proceedings of the 11th International Byozoology Association Conference: 17-37 They are therefore listed here as 'unranked' groupings. Ascophorans are exclusively marine, but very widespread geographically and ecologically. They grow on various substrates and in a variety of colony shapes.

Classification

*Suborder Ascophora **Section Acanthostegomorpha ***Superfamily Cribrilinoidea ****Family

Cribrilinidae The Cribrilinidae family is a part of the suborder Ascophora within the bryozoa Bryozoa (also known as the Polyzoa, Ectoprocta or commonly as moss animals) are a phylum of simple, aquatic invertebrate animals, nearly all living in sedenta ...

****Family †Lekythoglenidae ****Family Euthyroididae ****Family Polliciporidae ***Superfamily Bifaxarioidea ****Family Bifaxariidae ****Family †Platyglenidae ****Family Mixtopeltidae ***Superfamily †Scorioporoidea ****Family †Scorioporidae ****Family †Nephroporidae ***Superfamily Catenicelloidea ****Family Catenicellidae ****Family †Concatenellidae ****Family Eurystomellidae ****Family Savignyellidae ****Family Petalostegidae **Section Hippothoomorpha ***Superfamily Hippothooidea ****Family Hippothoidae ****Family Chorizoporidae ****Family Trypostegidae ****Family Pasytheidae ***Superfamily †Dysnoetoporoidea ****Family †Dysnoetoporidae **Section Umbonulomorpha ***Superfamily Arachnopusioidea ****Family Arachnopusiidae ****Family Exechonellidae ***Superfamily Adeonoidea ****Family Adeonidae ****Family

Adeonellidae The Adeonellidae is a family within the bryozoan order Cheilostomatida. Colonies are often upright bilaminar branches or sheets. The zooids generally have one or more adventitious avicularia on their frontal wall. Instead of ovicells the adeoni ...

****Family Inversiulidae ***Superfamily Pseudolepralioidea ****Family Pseudolepraliidae ***Superfamily Lepralielloidea ****Family Dhondtiscidae ****Family Bryocryptellidae ****Family Romancheinidae ****Family †Sfeniellidae ****Family Umbonulidae ****Family Tessaradomidae ****Family Hincksiporidae ****Family Sclerodomidae ****Family

Metrarabdotosidae Metrarabdotosidae is a family of bryozoans belonging to the order Cheilostomatida. Genera: * ''Aequilumina'' Gontar, 2002 * ''Biavicularium'' Cheetham, 1968 * ''Metrarabdotos'' Canu, 1914 * ''Polirhabdotos'' Hayward & Thorpe, 1987 References

***Superfamily Chlidoniopsoidea ****Family Chlidoniopsidae **Section Lepraliomorpha ***Superfamily Smittinoidea ****Family Smittinidae ****Family Bitectiporidae ****Family Watersiporidae ***Superfamily Schizoporelloidea ****Family

Schizoporellidae The Schizoporellidae is a family within the bryozoan order Cheilostomatida Cheilostomatida, also called Cheilostomata, is an order of Bryozoa in the class Gymnolaemata. They are exclusively marine, colonial invertebrate animals. Cheilostome ...

****Family Stomachetosellidae ****Family Tetraplariidae ****Family †Bryobaculidae ****Family Phorioppniidae ****Family Porinidae ****Family Margarettidae ****Family Myriaporidae ****Family Hippopodinidae ****Family Pacificincolidae ****Family Hippaliosinidae ****Family †Duvergieriidae ****Family Gigantoporidae ****Family Lanceoporidae ****Family Cheiloporinidae ****Family Cryptosulidae ****Family Actisecidae ****Family Teuchoporidae ****Family Echinovadomidae ****Family Phoceanidae ****Family Mawatariidae ****Family Vicidae ****Family †Cheilhorneropsidae ****Family Microporellidae ****Family Calwelliidae ****Family Petraliidae ****Family Petraliellidae ****Family Cyclicoporidae ****Family Lacernidae ****Family Escharinidae ****Family Acoraniidae ****Family Buffonellodidae ****Family Jaculinidae ****Family

Eminooeciidae Eminooeciidae is a family of bryozoans Bryozoa (also known as the Polyzoa, Ectoprocta or commonly as moss animals) are a phylum of simple, aquatic invertebrate animals, nearly all living in sedentary colonies. Typically about long, they h ...

****Family Fenestrulinidae ***Superfamily Urceoliporoidea ****Family Urceoliporidae ****Family †Prostomariidae ***Superfamily Didymoselloidea ****Family Didymosellidae ***Superfamily Euthyriselloidea ****Family Euthyrisellidae ***Superfamily Siphonicytaroidea ****Family Siphonicytaridae ***Superfamily Mamilloporoidea ****Family Mamilloporidae ****Family Crepidacanthidae ****Family Cleidochasmatidae ****Family Ascosiidae ***Superfamily Celleporoidea ****Family Celleporidae ****Family Torquatellidae ****Family Hippoporidridae ****Family Phidoloporidae ***Superfamily Conescharellinoidea ****Family Conescharellinidae ****Family Batoporidae ****Family Lekythoporidae ****Family Orbituliporidae ****Family †Cuvillieridae

References

Protostome infraorders Cheilostomatida {{bryozoan-stub