Tentaculita is an extinct class of lophophorates ranging from the Early Ordovician to the Middle Jurassic. They were suspension feeders with a near worldwide distribution. For a more thorough discussion, see ''
Tentaculites
''Tentaculites'' is an extinct genus of conical fossils of uncertain affinity, class Tentaculita, although it is not the only member of the class. It is known from Lower Ordovician to Upper Devonian deposits both as calcitic shells with a brach ...
''.
The presence of perforate septa and "septal necks" has been used to argue for a cephalopod affinity, whereas the shell microstructure, notably the presence of punctae, points to a brachiopod relationship, and preserved musculature suggests a relationship with bryozoans.
Subdivisions
; Subclasses
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Chonioconarida
Chonioconarida is an extinct subclass of free living animals from the Tentaculita class,
which were common in the Silurian and Devonian oceans. Chonioconarids have a slim and long
needle-like larval parts. They are covered with sculpture throug ...
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Dacryoconarida
Dacryoconarida is an extinct subclass of free living animals from the Tentaculita class, which were common in the Devonian oceans (Fisher, 1962). Dacryoconarids have a subspherical, drop- or tear-shaped embryonic chamber (Farsan 2005). The phyloge ...
;Orders
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Cornulitida
Cornulitida is an extinct order of encrusting animals from class Tentaculita, which were common around the globe in the Ordovician to Devonian oceans, and survived until the Carboniferous. Organisms that may be the oldest cornulitids have been f ...
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Microconchida
The order Microconchida is a group of small, spirally-coiled, encrusting fossil "worm" tubes from the class Tentaculita found from the Upper Ordovician to the Middle Jurassic (Bathonian) around the world. They have lamellar calcitic shells, ...
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Tentaculitida
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Trypanoporida
Trypanoporida is an extinct order of encrusting animals within Class Tentaculita, which were common in Devonian oceans (Weedon, 1991). Their affinity is unknown; they have been placed among worms and corals. They appear to be closely related to ot ...
;Genera
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Anticalyptraea
''Anticalyptraea'' is a fossil genus (biology), genus of encrusting tentaculitoid tubeworms from the Silurian to Devonian of Europe and North America (Vinn, 2010).
''Anticalyptraea'' commonly encrust various invertebrate fossils such as Stromatop ...
''
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Lindstroemiella''
References
Further reading
* Farsan, N. M. (1994). Tentaculiten: Ontogenese, Systematik, Phylogenese, Biostratonomie und Morphologie. ''Abhandlungen der Senckenbergischen Naturforschenden Gesellschaft'' 547: 1-128.
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External links
The Paleobiology Database
{{Taxonbar, from=Q1758465
Early Ordovician first appearances
Middle Jurassic extinctions