rhabditophora
Rhabditophora (from ''rhabdito''-, rhabdite + Greek -φορος ''phoros'' bearer, i.e., "rhabdite bearers") is a class of flatworms. It includes all parasitic flatworms (clade Neodermata) and most free-living species that were previously groupe ...
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flatworms
The flatworms, flat worms, Platyhelminthes, or platyhelminths (from the Greek πλατύ, ''platy'', meaning "flat" and ἕλμινς (root: ἑλμινθ-), ''helminth-'', meaning "worm") are a phylum of relatively simple bilaterian, unsegment ...
with ectolecithal eggs, i.e.,
yolk
Among animals which produce eggs, the yolk (; also known as the vitellus) is the nutrient-bearing portion of the egg whose primary function is to supply food for the development of the embryo. Some types of egg contain no yolk, for example bec ...
is not present in the egg as in most animals, but rather is secreted by accessory glands called
vitellaria
''Vitellaria paradoxa'' (formerly ''Butyrospermum parkii''), commonly known as shea tree, shi tree (), or vitellaria, is a tree of the family Sapotaceae. It is the only species in the genus ''Vitellaria'',Lecithoepitheliata, is more closely related to
Polycladida
The Polycladida represents a highly diverse clade of free-living marine flatworms. They are known from the littoral to the Sublittoral zone, sublittoral zone (extending to the deep hot vents), and many species are common from coral reefs. Only a ...
, a non-neoophoran order, than to other neoophorans. This would imply that the ectolecithal condition would have evolved twice. The clade formed by all other neoophorans, excluding Lecithoepitheliata, is usually called Euneoophora.