However, they are most commonly found in warm, shallow seas. The oldest bryozoans found in the fossil record are about 480 million years old. Most of the colonies grow on the ocean bottom attached to objects like stones, shells, or even seaweeds. They feed primarily on microscopic floating organisms found in the ocean. The name brachiopod comes from the Latin words brachio meaning arm and pod meaning foot.
Brachiopods still live today and most are found on shallow ocean bottoms.
Brachiopod fossils are found throughout the geologic record from about 540 million years ago to the present. There are over 200 living species of brachiopods.