Proper biological interpretation of a phylogeny can sometimes hinge on the placement of
key taxa—or fail when such key taxa are not sampled. In this light, we here present the first …

Recent developments in sequencing technologies have greatly improved our knowledge of
phylogenetic relationships and genomic architectures throughout the tree of life. Spiralia, a …

Zootaxa has been the leading journal on invertebrate systematics especially within
Annelida. Our current estimates indicate annelids include approximately 20,200 valid …

Xenoturbella and the acoelomorph worms (Xenacoelomorpha) are simple marine animals
with controversial affinities. They have been placed as the sister group of all other bilaterian …

Dicyemids and orthonectids were traditionally classified in a group called Mesozoa, but their
placement in a single clade has been contested and their position (s) within Metazoa is …

Two enigmatic groups of morphologically simple parasites of invertebrates, the Dicyemida
(syn. Rhombozoa) and the Orthonectida, since the 19th century have been usually …

Lophotrochozoa (also called Spiralia), the sister taxon of Ecdysozoa, includes animal taxa
with disparate body plans such as the segmented annelids, the shell bearing molluscs and …

Orthonectida is an enigmatic group of animals with still uncertain phylogenetic position.
Orthonectids parasitize various marine invertebrates. Their life cycle comprises a parasitic …

In some eukaryotes, a 'hidden break'has been described in which the 28S ribosomal RNA
molecule is cleaved into two subparts. The break is common in protostome animals …

Orthonectida is a small, rare, and in many aspects enigmatic group of organisms with a
unique life cycle and a highly simplified adult free-living stage parasitizing various marine …