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| Loricifera | |
|---|---|
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| Pliciloricus enigmatus | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| (unranked): | |
| Phylum: | Loricifera Kristensen, 1983 |
| Order: | Nanaloricida |
Loricifera is a recently discovered ecdysozoan phylum of marine animals. The phylum includes the first animals known to exist in a completely anoxic environment (no oxygen at all). The phylum was described in 1983 by Reinhardt Kristensen.
They are a phylum of very small animals which live in sediment. There are now twenty-two described species, in eight genera. In addition, there are about 100 more species which have been collected, but not yet described. Their size ranges from 100 µm to about 1 mm.
Their habitat is in the spaces between marine gravel to which they attach themselves. They are among the most recently discovered groups of Metazoans. They attach themselves quite firmly to the gravel, and this explains why they remained undiscovered for so long. The first specimen was collected in the 1970s, and later described in 1983. They are found at all depths of water, in different sediment types, and in all latitudes. They have not yet been found in the fossil record. view more...
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