Description:
Hippoporina verrilli is an encrusting species having calcified colonies.  Individual zooids are regular in shape, and generally quadrangular. They measure approximately 0.02 X 0.01 inches, but older colonies grow as large as 0.02 X 0.015 inches. A slightly raised rim separates zooids from one another. Ten to twenty regularly-spaced pores perforate the frontal surface of individual zooids. The horseshoe-shaped lophophore surrounding the mouth measures approximately 0.02 inches in diameter and bears 12 tentacles. Avicularia are highly variable, and absent in some colonies. If present, they may occur on either side, or on both sides of the orifice. Body color in specimens from the Indian River Lagoon is ivory or beige;  however, shades of yellow to red are common in specimens from other areas..

Habitat:
Typical habitat for bryozoans in the Indian River Lagoon include seagrasses, mangrove roots, drift algae, oyster reef, dock, pilings, breakwaters, and man-made debris.  H. verrilli was typically found encrusting wood, shell and other hard substrata.  It is commonly collected in areas where salinity falls below 30‰.

Range:
H. verrilli is widely distributed from Cape Cod to Brazil. In the Pacific, it is found from the Gulf of California to the Galapagos Islands, Ecuador.  H. verrilli is a highly abundant and well known fouling organism within the Indian River Lagoon.