Phylum Porifera: / P Ɒ R Ɪ F ƏR Ə
Phylum Porifera: / P Ɒ R Ɪ F ƏR Ə
Phylum Porifera: / P Ɒ R Ɪ F ƏR Ə
A stove-pipe sponge
Sponges are animals of the phylum Porifera (/prfr/; meaning "pore bearer"). They are
multicellular organisms that have bodies full of pores and channels allowing water to circulate
through them, consisting of jelly-like mesohyl sandwiched between two thin layers of cells. Sponges
have unspecialized cells that can transform into other types and that often migrate between the main
cell layers and the mesohyl in the process. Sponges do not have nervous, digestive or circulatory
systems. Instead, most rely on maintaining a constant water flow through their bodies to obtain food
and oxygen and to remove wastes.
Phylum Cnidaria
Cnidaria (/nadri/[4]) is a phylum containing over 10,000[5] species of animals found exclusively in
aquatic and mostly marine environments.
Phylum Platyheminthes
Caenorhabditis elegans,
a model species of roundworm
The nematodes /nmtodz/ or roundworms constitute the phylum Nematoda. They are a diverse
animal phylum inhabiting a very broad range of environments. Nematode species can be difficult to
distinguish, and although over 25,000 have been described, [
Phylum Annelida
Glycera sp.
modern species includingragworms, earthworms and leeches.[3] Various forms specialise in their
respective ecologies; some in marine environments as distinct as tidal zones and hydrothermal
vents, others in fresh water, and yet others in moist terrestrial environments.
Phylum Mollusca
Tonicella lineata,
a polyplacophoran or chiton,
anterior end towards the right
The molluscs or mollusks[note 1] /mlsks/ compose the large phylum of invertebrate animals known
as the Mollusca. Around 85,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized. Molluscs are the
largest marinephylum, comprising about 23% of all the named marine organisms. Numerous
molluscs also live in freshwater and terrestrial habitats.
Phylum Echinodermata
A brittle star,
Phylum Arthropoda
Molting Cicada