GEOLOGY

Detailed explanation-1: -Brachiopods are marine animals belonging to their own phylum of the animal kingdom, Brachiopoda. Although relatively rare, modern brachiopods occupy a variety of seabed habitats ranging from the tropics to the cold waters of the Arctic and, especially, the Antarctic.

Detailed explanation-2: -Brachiopods are marine filter-feeding organisms. They take in water and particles through the opening between their valves and filter food particles from the water through soft parts, called lophophores, within their shells.

Detailed explanation-3: -The oldest fossil brachiopods are found in Cambrian rocks, which are over 500 million years old. The animals first became abundant in Ordovician time and remained so throughout the Paleozoic Era.

Detailed explanation-4: -Scientifically, articulate brachiopods are in the subphylum Rhynconeliformea, which is divided into two broad classes; Rhynchonellata and Strophomenata.