Opalozoa


Opalozoa is a subphylum of heterotrophic protists of the phylum Bigyra, and is the sister group to Sagenista. Opalozoans are non-photosynthetic heterokonts that are ancestrally phagotrophic but many times have evolved to be osmotrophic saprotrophs in the gut of vertebrate animals.

Taxonomy

History: phylum Opalozoa

In 1993 the name “Opalozoa” referred to a group of protists that was very different from what it is now. It was a phylum composed of many unrelated zooflagellates, grouped together because of the common presence of tubular mitochondrial cristae and the lack of cortical alveoli or rigid tubular ciliary hairs. It also included the opalinids, proteomyxids and plasmodiophorids.

Subphylum Proterozoa
Class Heteromitea
Subclass Sarcomonadia
Superorder Jakobidea
Order Jakobida
Order Cercomonadida
Superorder Thaumatomonadidea
Order Thaumatomonadida
Superorder Proteomyxidea
Order Pseudosporida
Order Leucodictyida
Subclass Thecomonadia
Order Apusomonadida
Order Cryomonadida
Subclass Anisomonadia
Order Diphylleida
Order Proteromonadida
Class Phytomyxea
Order Phagomyxida
Order Plasmodiophorida
Class Telonemea
Order Telonemida
Order Nephromycida
Class Cyathobodonea
Order Pseudodendromonadida
Order Spongomonadida
Order Kathablepharida
Class Ebridea
Order Ebriida
Subphylum Opalinata
Class Opalinea
Order Karotomorphida
Order Opalinida
Subphylum Kinetomonada
Class Kinetomonadea
Order Histionida
Order Heliomonadida
Subphylum Hemimastigophora
Class Hemimastigea
Order Hemimastigida

Modern classification

The modern taxonomy of Opalozoa, down to order level, is as follows:
The cladogram below shows the internal relationships of Opalozoa.