1. The Phoronida, a probable close relative of the Brachiopoda, is the outgroup on the above cladogram.Both groups belong to the larger group Lophophorata.

2. Bryozoans (commonly called moss animals) are generally sessile, colonial invertebrates that belong to the phylum Bryozoa (or Ectoprocta), which is sometimes combined with two other phyla (Phoronida and Brachiopoda) to form a possible clade within the Deuterostomia

3. ‘Several recent evolution trees show the Phoronida and Brachiopoda as closely interrelated, with the Brachiopoda possibly a paraphyletic group.’ ‘However, the end-Guadalupian regression eliminated most of the shelf areas, and this could have been the direct cause of the almost total extinction of Brachiopoda in the Late Permian in the