Though it derives from an outdated name for this lineage, some still find the term 'chondrophore' useful as a synonym to 'porpitid' in discussions of the two genera contained therein, Porpita and Velella.

They all live at the surface of the open ocean, and are colonies of carnivorous, free-floating hydroids whose role in the plankton community is similar to that of pelagic jellyfish.

The chondrophores look like a single organism but are actually colonial animals, made up of orderly cooperatives of polyps living under specialized sail-structures.

The tiny individual animals are specialized to perform specific tasks; some form the central gas-filled disc (which is a golden brown colour and hardened by chitinous material) essential to keeping the colony afloat; others form radiating tentacles for tasks such as catching prey, reproduction, and digestion.

[1] They had previously been placed either in the Anthomedusae (also known as Athecata) or the Siphonophorae, and though many accepted Totton's placement, a considerable number of authors maintained them in the Anthomedusae/Athecata all the time.