Opalozoa
Opalina ranarum, an opalozoan
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Clade:	Diaphoretickes
Clade:	SAR
Clade:	Stramenopiles
Phylum:	Bigyra
Subphylum:	Opalozoa Cavalier-Smith, 1991 stat. nov. 2006 [1]
Infraphyla and classes [1]
? Pendulomonas ? Bordnamonadidae Bikosia Bikosea Placidozoa Wobblata Placididea Nanomonadea Opalomonadea Opalinata Opalinea Blastocystea

Opalozoa is a subphylum of heterotrophic protists of the phylum Bigyra, and is the sister group to Sagenista. ^{[2] [1]} Opalozoans are non-photosynthetic heterokonts that are ancestrally phagotrophic but many times have evolved to be osmotrophic saprotrophs in the gut of vertebrate animals. ^[3]

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 ( retronemes). It also included the opalinids, proteomyxids and plasmodiophorids. ^[4]

Modern classification

The modern taxonomy of Opalozoa, down to order level, is as follows: ^[1]

• Subphylum Opalozoa Cavalier-Smith, 1991 stat. nov. 2006 emend. 2018
  • Infraphylum Bikosia Cavalier-Smith, 2013
    • Class Bikosea Cavalier-Smith nom. n. pro Bicosoecea Cavalier-Smith, 1986
      • Subclass Bicosidia Cavalier-Smith, 2006 orth. emend.
        • Superorder Cyathobodoniae Cavalier-Smith, 1993 emend. stat. nov. 2006
          • Order Bicoecida Grassé, 1926
          • Order Anoecida Cavalier-Smith, 1997 emend. 2006
          • Order Pseudodendromonadida Hibberd, 1985 emend. Cavalier-Smith, 2006
        • Superorder Borokiae Cavalier-Smith, 2006
          • Order Borokida Cavalier-Smith, 2006
      • Subclass Rictidia Cavalier-Smith, 2013
        • Order Rictida Cavalier-Smith, 2013
  • Infraphylum Placidozoa Cavalier-Smith, 2013
    • Superclass Wobblata Cavalier-Smith, 2006 stat. nov. 2013 [ paraphyletic]
      • Class Placididea Moriya, Nakayama & Inouye, 2002
        • Order Placidida Moriya, Nakayama & Inouye, 2002 [=Placidae Cavalier-Smith, 2006
      • Class Nanomonadea Cavalier-Smith, 2013
        • Order Uniciliatida Cavalier-Smith, 2013
      • Class Opalomonadea Cavalier-Smith, 2013
    • Superclass Opalinata Wenyon, 1926 emend. Cavalier-Smith, 1996 stat. nov. 2006
      • Class Opalinea Wenyon, 1926 stat. nov. Cavalier-Smith, 1993 emend. 2013
        • Order Proteromonadida Grassé, 1952 emend. Cavalier-Smith, 1993
        • Order Opalinida Poche, 1913 stat. nov. Hall, 1953 emend. Cavalier-Smith
      • Class Blastocystea Zierdt et al., 1967
        • Order Blastocystida Zierdt, 1978
• Opalozoa incertae sedis:
  • Pendulomonas Tong, 1977
  • Bordnamonadidae Cavalier-Smith, 2013

Phylogeny

The cladogram below shows the internal relationships of Opalozoa. ^[1]

References

Wikispecies has information related to Opalozoa.