Phaeodarea, or Phaeodaria, is a group of
amoeboid
An amoeba (; less commonly spelled ameba or amœba; plural ''am(o)ebas'' or ''am(o)ebae'' ), often called an amoeboid, is a type of cell or unicellular organism with the ability to alter its shape, primarily by extending and retracting pseudopo ...
cercozoa
Cercozoa is a phylum of diverse single-celled eukaryotes. They lack shared morphological characteristics at the microscopic level, and are instead defined by molecular phylogenies of rRNA and actin or polyubiquitin. They were the first major ...
n organisms. They are traditionally considered
radiolaria
The Radiolaria, also called Radiozoa, are protozoa of diameter 0.1–0.2 mm that produce intricate mineral skeletons, typically with a central capsule dividing the cell into the inner and outer portions of endoplasm and ectoplasm. The el ...
ns,
but in molecular trees do not appear to be close relatives of the other groups, and are instead placed among the
Cercozoa
Cercozoa is a phylum of diverse single-celled eukaryotes. They lack shared morphological characteristics at the microscopic level, and are instead defined by molecular phylogenies of rRNA and actin or polyubiquitin. They were the first major ...
.
They are distinguished by the structure of their central capsule and by the presence of a phaeodium, an aggregate of waste particles within the cell.
The term "Radiozoa" has been used to refer to radiolaria when Phaeodarea is explicitly excluded.
Phaeodarea produce hollow skeletons composed of amorphous
silica
Silicon dioxide, also known as silica, is an oxide of silicon with the chemical formula , most commonly found in nature as quartz and in various living organisms. In many parts of the world, silica is the major constituent of sand. Silica is ...
and organic material, which rarely fossilize. The
endoplasm
Endoplasm generally refers to the inner (often granulated), dense part of a cell's cytoplasm. This is opposed to the ectoplasm which is the outer (non-granulated) layer of the cytoplasm, which is typically watery and immediately adjacent to the ...
is divided by a cape with three openings, of which one gives rise to feeding
pseudopod
A pseudopod or pseudopodium (plural: pseudopods or pseudopodia) is a temporary arm-like projection of a eukaryotic cell membrane that is emerged in the direction of movement. Filled with cytoplasm, pseudopodia primarily consist of actin filament ...
s, and the others let through bundles of
microtubule
Microtubules are polymers of tubulin that form part of the cytoskeleton and provide structure and shape to eukaryotic cells. Microtubules can be as long as 50 micrometres, as wide as 23 to 27 nm and have an inner diameter between 1 ...
s that support the
axopod
A pseudopod or pseudopodium (plural: pseudopods or pseudopodia) is a temporary arm-like projection of a eukaryotic cell membrane that is emerged in the direction of movement. Filled with cytoplasm, pseudopodia primarily consist of actin filament ...
s. Unlike true radiolarians, there are no cross-bridges between them. They also lack symbiotic
alga
Algae (; singular alga ) is an informal term for a large and diverse group of photosynthetic eukaryotic organisms. It is a polyphyletic grouping that includes species from multiple distinct clades. Included organisms range from unicellular mic ...
e, generally living below the
photic zone
The photic zone, euphotic zone, epipelagic zone, or sunlight zone is the uppermost layer of a body of water that receives sunlight, allowing phytoplankton to perform photosynthesis. It undergoes a series of physical, chemical, and biological pro ...
, and do not produce any
strontium sulphate.
Taxonomy
Phylogeny
Through phylogenetic analyses it has been discovered that Phaeodarea is a
monophyletic
In cladistics for a group of organisms, monophyly is the condition of being a clade—that is, a group of taxa composed only of a common ancestor (or more precisely an ancestral population) and all of its lineal descendants. Monophyletic gr ...
clade, but the historical orders and families comprising it aren't. Instead, the clade consists of 11 subclades defined by morphological and phylogenetic values that do not correspond with the traditional orders and families:
Despite this, the current taxonomy by
Cavalier-Smith
Thomas (Tom) Cavalier-Smith, FRS, FRSC, NERC Professorial Fellow (21 October 1942 – 19 March 2021), was a professor of evolutionary biology in the Department of Zoology, at the University of Oxford.
His research has led to disc ...
maintains the original classification of suborders
divided between two new orders:
#Eodarida, containing phaeodarea with no
silica
Silicon dioxide, also known as silica, is an oxide of silicon with the chemical formula , most commonly found in nature as quartz and in various living organisms. In many parts of the world, silica is the major constituent of sand. Silica is ...
skeleton or with a skeleton made of simple radiating spicules. Contains two suborders:
Phaeogymnocellina and
Phaeocystina.
#Opaloconchida, containing phaeodarea with a highly perforated, shell-like opaline silica skeleton. Contains the remaining five suborders:
Phaeosphaeria,
Phaeocalpia,
Phaeogromia,
Phaeoconchia and
Phaeodendria.
Modern classification
The modern classification is the following, with the subclass containing a total of 2 orders, 7 suborders,
16 families and 39 genera.
*Order Eodarida
**Suborder Phaeogymnocellina (=
Phaeogymnocellida
Phaeogymnocellida is an order of cercozoans in the class Phaeodarea
Phaeodarea, or Phaeodaria, is a group of amoeboid cercozoan organisms. They are traditionally considered radiolarians, but in molecular trees do not appear to be close relativ ...
)
***Family
Phaeosphaeridae – ''
Phaeopyla'', ''
Phaeodactylis'', ''
Phaeosphaera''
***Family
Phaeodinidae – ''
Phaeodina''
***Family
Atlanticellidae – ''
Gymnocelia'', ''
Halocelia'', ''
Lobocelia'', ''
Miracelia'', ''
Planktonetta''
**Suborder Phaeocystina (=
Phaeocystida)
***Family
Aulacanthidae – ''
Aulacantha''
***Family
Astracanthidae – ''
Astracantha'', ''
Castanella'', ''
Castanissa''
*Order Opaloconchida
**Suborder Phaeosphaeria (=
Phaeocystida)
***Family
Aulosphaeridae – ''
Aulosphaera'', ''
Aularia'', ''
Aulotractus''
***Family
Cannosphaeridae – ''
Coelocantha''
***Family
Sagosphaeridae – ''
Sagenoarium'', ''
Sagenoscena'', ''
Sagoscena''
**Suborder Phaeocalpia (=
Phaeocalpida)
***Family
Castanellidae – ''
Castanea
The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere.
The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce.
The unrelate ...
''
***Family
Circoporidae
Circoporidae is a family of cercozoans, single-celled eukaryotes in the order Phaeocalpida
Phaeocalpida is an order of cercozoans in the class Phaeodarea
Phaeodarea, or Phaeodaria, is a group of amoeboid cercozoan organisms. They are tradit ...
– ''
Circoporus'', ''
Circospathis'', ''
Haeckeliana''
***Family
Tuscaroridae – ''
Tuscarora Tuscarora may refer to the following:
First nations and Native American people and culture
* Tuscarora people
**'' Federal Power Commission v. Tuscarora Indian Nation'' (1960)
* Tuscarora language, an Iroquoian language of the Tuscarora people
* ...
'', ''
Tuscarilla'', ''
Tuscaretta''
***Family
Porospathidae – ''
Porospathis''
***Family
Polypyramidae – ''
Polypyramis''
**Suborder Phaeogromia (=
Phaeogromida)
***Family
Challengeridae – ''
Challengeria'', ''
Challengeron''
***Family
Medusettiidae – ''
Euphysetta'', ''
Gazelletta'', ''
Medusetta''
***Family
Lirellidae – ''
Borgertella'', ''
Lirella''
**Suborder Phaeoconchia (=
Phaeoconchida)
***Family
Concharidae – ''
Conchidium''
**Suborder Phaeodendria (=
Phaeodendrida)
***Family
Coelodendridae – ''
Coelodendrum'', ''
Coelographis''
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q139462
Cercozoa classes
Amoeboids
Taxa named by Ernst Haeckel