NODDING HEADS (Ectoprocts)

Subject to an “identity crisis,” entoprocts so closely resemble bryozoans (moss animals) that the two groups have been lumped together. However, the most significant, distinguishing feature of an entoproct is the placement of its anus, which is located within the ring of feeding tentacles or calyx of each stalked individual. In contrast, the anus of the bryozoan is on the outside.
The many stalks of an entoproct colony bend very readily. This movement, coupled with the ability to roll the tentacles inward, produces a “nodding head”-like motion, hence the group’s common name.
At least 13 entoprocts reside in the Pacific Northwest.