NEOLEPADOIDEA, Chan & Dreyer & Gale & Glenner & Ewers-Saucedo & Pérez-Losada & Kolbasov & Crandall & Høeg, 2021

Chan, Benny K. K., Dreyer, Niklas, Gale, Andy S., Glenner, Henrik, Ewers-Saucedo, Christine, Pérez-Losada, Marcos, Kolbasov, Gregory A., Crandall, Keith A. & Høeg, Jens T., 2021, The evolutionary diversity of barnacles, with an updated classification of fossil and living forms, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 193, pp. 789-846 : 831

†SUPERFAMILY NEOLEPADOIDEA SUPERFAM. NOV.

Diagnosis: Eight-plated capitulum comprising paired scuta, terga, upper latera, rostrum and carina. Asymmetry commonly involves loss of the upper latus on one side of the capitulum.

Comments: The group forms a well-defined clade based upon molecular analysis. All living species inhabit hydrothermal vent or seep habitats. There is remarkable morphological convergence of some taxa with Brachylepadomorpha ( Gale et al., 2020) , and the neolepadomorphs were probably derived from a form close to Pycnolepas . Gale (2019) included the Balanomorpha , Brachylepadomorpha, Neolepadomorpha and Verrucomorpha in the clade Unilatera, characterized by possession of only two latera (upper latus pair).