NAME: France Joseph O.

Pascual
SECTION: BS Biology 2-2

SURVEY OF THE PHYLIUM CHORDATA

The highlight of the animal kingdom is reached in the Phylum Chordata

which includes the largest and most striking animals. A diversity of forms are
included - fishes, frogs, snakes, birds, and humans, giving difficulty to find
generalized characteristics that apply to all. However, all possess certain
common characteristics which account for their being grouped together.

PURPOSE:

To ascertain the different representative animals under classes, orders

and families of Phylum Chordate, and to know how each groups of animal is
classified and identified.

MATERIALS NEEDED:

Preserved specimen, diagrams of illustrations of different vertebrate

animals.

PROCEDURE:

Make a diagrammatic drawing of clippings of the different

representatives animal under each classes a and orders of Hemichordata,
Urochordata, Agnatha, Chondrichthyes, Reptiles, Aves, Amphibians, and
Mammalians.

REVIEW QUESTIONS:

1. A postanal tail and gill cleft are cited as chordated characteristics,

yet man is a chordate and these features are not seen in man.
Explain.

Animals, including humans, under the phylum Chordata have five

characteristic features: a notochord, a dorsal hollow nerve cord,
pharyngeal slits, a post-anal tail, and an endostyle/thyroid gland.
Pharyngeal slits are openings in the pharynx that allow for the exit of the
water that enters the mouth. On the other hand, the post-anal tail is a
posterior elongation of the body that provides a locomotion source in
aquatic species. In humans, features like pharyngeal slits and a post-
anal tail are not evident because those prior characteristics are highly
modified. The post-anal tail became and reduced to a vestigial coccyx
(tail bone) that aids in balance during sitting, while the pharyngeal slits
turned into components of the ear, tonsil, and thymus. The human
embryo once exhibits gill slits and a post-anal tail since they share a
common ancestor with fishes during the early stages. However, human
embryos became more and more differentiated as it matures.

2. What evidence support the concept of a common close ancestry of the

echinoderms, the hemichordates and chordates?

Echinoderms are a member of a phylum of marine invertebrates

that show superficial five-part radial symmetry with a spiny body covering.
Hemichordates are suspension feeders exclusively marine organisms the
phylum of bilateral animals most closely related to chordates. Chordates
are eucoelomate deuterostomes and share a common ancestor with
echinoderms.

With the three preceding phyla, Hemichordates are the sister taxa
to echinoderms, and closely related to chordates.

Despite echinoderms have largely been excluded from other

bilaterians, echinoderm larvae are bilaterally symmetric and show pattern
similarities with chordates in early endomesoderm specification and axis
patterning (Lapraz et al., 2009; Peter and Davidson, 2010; Angerer et
al., 2011), aiding direct body plan comparisons with other phyla.
Hemichordates share numerous developmental similarities with both
chordates and echinoderms and hold great promise for providing insights
into the early origins of both chordate and deuterostome development.

3. The tunicates or sea squirt are placed in the chordate phylum even
though they look more like some of the invertebrates. Explain why?

Tunicate, in physical appearance, looks like small, colored blobs,

and many people suspect that tunicates are invertebrates. However, these
Urochordate is more closely related to vertebrates like humans than to
most other invertebrate animals. Additionally, the tunic (cellulose-like
carbohydrate material usually found in plants) covers the tunicates' outer
surface, which gives them its 'blob' appearance.

Although tunicates classify as chordates, the adult does not have a

notochord, a dorsal hollow nerve cord, or a post-anal tail, although they do
have pharyngeal slits and an endostyle. However, the tadpole larval form
possesses all five structures of a chordate.
 4. Make a survey of the different groups of animal under phylum
chordata and discuss their major characteristics.

PHYLUM CHORDATA
Subphylum I. Cephalochordata, Amphioxus and its allies.
Subphylum II. Urochordata, tunicates or sea squirts.
Subphylum III. Hemichordata, Balanoglossus and its allies.
Subphylum IV. Vertebrata, all animals with a vertebral column.
Class 1. Cyclostomata, the cyclostomes or round-mouthed fishes, fish-
like animals without lower jaws or paired fins.
Class 2. Pisces, the true fishes, with jaws and paired fins
Subclass 1. Elasmobranchii, fishes with a cartilaginous skeleton
and exposed gill slits, including the dogfish, skates, sharks, etc.
Subclass 2. Teleostomi, fishes with a more or less bony skeleton
and with gills slits concealed under an operculum.
Order 1. Crossopterygii, paired fins with a basal stalk
Order 2. Chondrostei, paired fins without a stalk, skeleton
largely cartilaginous, with a spiral valve in the intestine, heart
with a conus arteriosus; the sturgeon and spoonbill.
Order 3. Holostei, like the preceding, but skeleton well-
ossified; the gar pike and the river dogfish or bowfin
Order 4. Teleostei, paired fins without a stalk, skeleton well
ossified, without the spiral valve or conus arteriosus; all of
the common fishes. This order is commonly referred to as
the teleosts or bony fishes. The three orders Chondrostei,
Holostei and Teleostei are often grouped as the
Actinopterygii or ray-finned fishes in which the fin rays spring
directly from the body in contrast to the Crossopterygii or
fringe-finned fishes, in which the fin rays spring from a stalk
and form a sort of fringe on the end of the stalk.
Class 3. Amphibia, amphibians, lowest four-legged vertebrates, skins
naked and slimy, living in or near water.
Subclass 1. Stegocephala, extinct amphibia, with tails, and
covered with an armor of bony plates.
Subclass 2. Lissamphibia, present-day amphibia, with naked
slimy skins (a few with minute, concealed scales).
Order 1. Urodela, with tails; the salamanders and newts,
Necturus, Amblystoma, Cryptobranchus, etc.
Order 2. Anura, tailless; frogs, toads.
Class 4. Reptilia, reptiles, air-breathing vertebrates covered with horny
scales.
Order 1. Cotylosauria. Most primitive group of extinct
reptiles, resembling Stegocephala in skeletal characters.
Order 2. Chelonia, the turtles, body inclosed in a hard case.
 Order 3. Rhyncocephalia, including but one animal, the
Sphenodon (Hatleria) or tuatara of New Zealand, a lizard-like
animal with primitive skeletal characters.
Order 4. Squamata, usually of small or moderate size, and
covered with horny scales.
Suborder 1. Lacertilia, the lizards, nearly always
with limbs, eyelids movable.
Suborder 2. Ophidia, the snakes, devoid of limbs,
eyelids immovable.
Order 5. Crocodilia, the crocodiles, alligators, gavials, and
caimans, large reptiles with both horny scales and bony
plates in the skin.
Class 5. Aves, birds, vertebrates with feathers.
Class 6. Mammalia, mammals, vertebrates with hair and milk glands.
Subclass 1. Prototheria, mammals laying eggs.
Order 1. Monotremata, the monotremes, or egg-laying
mammals, including only the duckbill (Ornithorhynchus) and
the spiny anteaters {Echidna and Proechidna) of the
Australian region.
Subclass 2. Eutheria, mammals bearing the young alive.
Division 1. Metatheria.
Order 1. Marsupialia, the marsupials, mammals bearing the
young in a very immature state, and carrying them in a
pouch formed by a fold of skin on the abdomen, placenta
absent or primitive; kangaroos, opossums, etc.
Division 2. Placentalia, the placental mammals,
without a pouch, young nourished in the uterus by
a placenta, which is produced by a fusion
between certain parts of the embryo and certain parts
of the maternal uterus.
Order 1. Insectivora, walk on sole and heel, have 5 clawed
toes on each foot, nose tends to be pointed and tubular; eyes and
ears are generally small, including shrews, moles, hedgehogs,
tenrecs, otter shrews, golden moles, and solenodons.
Order 2. Camivora, the carnivorous mammals, with claws
and sharp, cutting teeth; the bears, raccoons, minks,
martens, weasels, otters, dogs, foxes, wolves, cats, lions,
tigers, hyaenas, seals, walruses.
Order 3. Perissodactyla, odd-toed hoofed ungulates that
includes the horses, asses, and zebras, the tapirs, and
the rhinoceroses.
Order 4. Artiodactyla, even-toed hoofed ungulates, which
includes pigs, peccaries, hippopotamuses, camels, chevrotains,
deer, giraffes, pronghorn, antelopes, sheep, goats, and cattle.
Order 5. Cetacea, entirely carnivorous, hairs are restricted to
the head, with isolated follicles occurring on the lower jaw and the
snout, use vertical strokes when they swim, they breathe while
 moving through the water and spend only a short time at the
surface, where they exhale in an explosive ventilation called
a blow, includes whales, dolphins, and porpoises.
Order 6. Proboscidea, have upper incisor teeth that emerge
from the skull as tusks including elephants, mastodons, and
mammoths
Order 7. Sirenia, have two front limbs in the form of flippers but
no hind limbs; even the pelvis is vestigial, and there are no
skeletal remnants of leg or foot bones at all, manatee and dugong.
Order 8. Hyracoidea, small hoofed mammals, Hyraxes
and pikas
Order 9. Rodentia, the rodents, with chisel-like front teeth,
and back teeth with flat, grinding surfaces; the hares,rabbits,
squirrels, rats, mice, porcupines, guinea pigs.
Order 10. Xenarthra, have lumbar vertebrae called
“xenarthrous”; for extra contacts (joints, or arthroses) that function
to strengthen the lower back and hips, includes armadillo, anteater
and sloth
Order 11. Pholidota, habit of curling into a ball when
threatened, covered with overlapping brownish scales composed
of cemented hairs, with small thickly lidded eyes and a long
toothless muzzle, pangolin
Order 12. Tubulidentata, piglike face and burrowing habits,
face is narrow with an elongated snout, very reduced eyes, front
foot are equipped with strong, flattened nail-like “hooves”
resembling spades, aardvark
Order 13. Lagomorpha, have long ears, a short tail, and strong
hind limbs that provide a bounding locomotion including rabbits
and hares
Order 14. Edentata, teeth lacking or degenerate; the ant
bears, sloths, and armadillos

SOURCES:
Armstrong, D. M. , Wilson, . Don E. and Jones, . J. Knox (2021, February 12). Mammal.
Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/animal/mammal
Clark, M.A., Choi, J.& Douglas, M. (2018) Biology2e. Openstax, 849-885. Retrieved from
https://openstax.org/details/books/biology-2e
Gerhart, J., Lowe, C., & Kirschner, M. (2005). Hemichordates and the origin of
chordates. Current opinion in genetics & development, 15(4), 461-467.
Hyman, L.H. Comporative Vertebrate Anatomy. The University of Chicago Press,
Chicago Illinois
Röttinger, E., & Lowe, C. J. (2012). Evolutionary crossroads in developmental biology:
hemichordates. Development, 139(14), 2463-2475.
 Part I. Subphylum 1. Urochordata or Tunicata

1
Fig. 1.1 Sea squirt

Part II.Subphylum Cephalochordata or Aerania

2
Fig. 1.2 Ampioxus

SOURCE:
1 | Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2020, March 4). Sea squirt. Encyclopedia Britannica.
https://www.britannica.com/animal/sea-squirt
2 | Holland, L., Laudet, V., & Schubert, M. (n.d.). The chordate amphioxus: An emerging model organism for
developmental biology. Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences. Retrieved March 13, 2015, from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15378201
 Subphylum III. Vertebrata or Craniata

A. Class Agnatha

1. Order Cyclostomata

3
Fig. 1.3 Sea lamprey

B. Class Placodermi

4
Fig. 1.4 Dunkleosteus sp.

SOURCE:
3 | https://www.fws.gov/midwest/SeaLamprey/
4 | https://alchetron.com/Placodermi
 Class Chondrichtyes

1. Order Elasmobranchii or Eusclachii

5
Fig. 1.5 Sharks

2. Order Holocephaii

Fig 1.6 Chimaeras (Ghost sharks) 6

SOURCE:
5 | https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/14/science/great-white-shark.html
6 | https://sharkdevocean.wordpress.com/2014/08/26/introducing-chimaeras/
 C. Class Osteichyes
Subclass 1: Choanichthyes
Superorder 1: Crossopterrgii

Fig 1.7 Coelacanth 7

Superorder 2: Dipnoi

Fig 1.8 Lungfish 8

SOURCE:
7 | National Geographic. "Coelacanth." (June 5, 2015) http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/fish/
coelacanth/
8 | Lüling, K. Heinz (2017, April 9). Lungfish. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/animal/
lungfish
 Subclass 2. Actinoptergii or Teleostomi
Order 1. Chondrostei

9
Fig. 1.9 Sturgeon

Order 2. Holostei

Fig. 1.10 Bowfin 10

Order 3. Telostei

Fig. 1.11 Anglerfish 11

SOURCE:
9 | Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2019, December 19). Sturgeon. Encyclopedia Britannica.
https://www.britannica.com/animal/sturgeon-fish
10 | Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2018, January 22). Bowfin. Encyclopedia Britannica.
https://www.britannica.com/animal/bowfin
11 | Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2020, May 3). Anglerfish. Encyclopedia Britannica.
https://www.britannica.com/animal/anglerfish
 E. Class Amphibia
Order 1. Anura or Salienta

12
Fig. 1.12 Frog

Order 2. Lepospondyli

13
Fig. 1.13 Diplocaulus

Order 3. Caudata or Urodela

14
Fig. 1.14 Salamander

SOURCE:
12 | Arvin C. Diesmos et al. 2020. A new forest frog of the genus Platymantis (Amphibia: Anura:
Ceratobatrachidae: subgenus Tirahanulap) from Leyte and Samar islands, eastern
Philippines. Zootaxa 4830 (3): 573-591; doi: 10.11646/zootaxa.4830.3.6
13 | https://www.pinterest.ph/pin/626211523174027320/
14 | https://www.dkfindout.com/us/animals-and-nature/amphibians/how-salamander-moves/
 Order 4. Labyrithodontia

Fig. 1.15 Ichthyostega 15

Order 5. Apoda or Cymnophiona

Fig. 1.16 Caecilians 16

SOURCE:
15 | Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2007, January 14). Ichthyostega. Encyclopedia Britannica.
https://www.britannica.com/animal/Ichthyostega
16 | https://www.dkfindout.com/us/animals-and-nature/amphibians/wormlike-amphibians/
 F. Class Reptilia
Subclass 1. Anapsida
Order: Chelonians

Fig. 1.17 Turtle 17

Subclass 2. Lepidossauria
Order 1. Rhynochocephalia

Fig. 1.18 Tuatara 18

SOURCE:
17 | Zug, G. R. (2020, April 30). Turtle. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/animal/turtle-
reptile
18 | https://www.wired.com/2013/12/the-creature-feature-10-fun-facts-about-the-tuatara-or-just-the-tuatara-
of-us/
 Order 2. Squamata

19
Fig. 1.19 Lizard

Subclass 3. Archossauria
Order 1. Crocodilia

Fig 1.20 Crocodile 20

SOURCE:
19 | https://www.dkfindout.com/us/animals-and-nature/reptiles/lizards/
20 | Wermuth, H. Fritz and Ross, . James P. (2020, May 20). Crocodile. Encyclopedia Britannica.
https://www.britannica.com/animal/crocodile-order
 G. Class Aves
Subclass 1. Archeonithes

Fig 1.21 Archaeopteryx 21

Subclass 2. Neornithea

Fig 1.22 Duck 22

SOURCE:
21 | https://www.dkfindout.com/uk/dinosaurs-and-prehistoric-life/dinosaurs/archaeopteryx/
22 | Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2019, July 18). Duck. Encyclopedia Britannica.
https://www.britannica.com/animal/duck
 H. Class Mammalia
Subclass 1. Prototheria
Order 1. Monotremata

23
Fig. 1.23 Platypus

Subclass 2. Metatheria or Dedelphia or Marsuplia

Order 2. Marsupialia

24
Fig. 1.24 Koala

Subclass 3. Eutheria or Mosodelphia or Placentalia

Order 3. Insectivora

25
Fig. 1.25 Hedgehog

SOURCE:
23 | https://www.britannica.com/story/why-is-the-platypus-a-mammal
24 | https://www.britannica.com/animal/koala
25 | https://kids.britannica.com/students/article/hedgehog/274816
 Order 7. Carnivora

29
Fig. 1.29 Dalmatian Dog

Order 8. Perissodactyla

Fig. 1.30 Horse 30

Order 9. Ariodactyla

Fig. 1.31 Hippopotamus 31

SOURCE:
29 | https://www.britannica.com/animal/Dalmatian-dog
30 | https://www.britannica.com/animal/horse
31 | https://kids.britannica.com/students/article/hippopotamus/274889
 Order 10. Cetacea

32
Fig. 1.32 Rough-Toothed Dolphin

Order 11. Proboscidea

Fig. 1.33 Asian Elephant 33

Order 12. Sirenia

Fig. 1.34 Sea Cow 34

SOURCE:
32 | https://www.britannica.com/list/a-dose-of-dolphin-induced-dopamine-8-species-of-adorable-cetacean24
33 | https://www.worldwildlife.org/species/asian-elephant
34 | http://www.takepart.com/article/2014/10/03/australias-sea-cows-struggle-survive-poachers/
 Order 13. Hyracoidea

35
Fig. 1.35 Hyrax

Order 14. Rodentia

36
Fig. 1.36 Mouse

Order 15. Xenarthra

37
Fig. 1.37 Sloth

SOURCE:
35 | https://www.awf.org/wildlife-conservation/hyrax
36 | Musser, G. (2020, April 30). Mouse. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/animal/
mouse-rodent
37 | Gardner, A. L. (2021, February 9). Sloth. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/animal/
sloth
 Order 16. Pholidota

38
Fig. 1.38 Pangolin

Order 17. Tubulidentata

39
Fig. 1.39 Aardvark

Order 18. Lagomorpha

40
Fig. 1.40 Rabbit

SOURCE:
38 | Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2020, June 17). Pangolin. Encyclopedia Britannica.
https://www.britannica.com/animal/pangolin
39 | Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia (2020, February 19). Aardvark. Encyclopedia Britannica.
https://www.britannica.com/animal/aardvark
40 | Smith, A. T. (2020, October 29). Rabbit. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/animal/
rabbit
 Order 19. Edentata

41
Fig. 1.41 Armadillo

SOURCE:
41 | Gardner, A. L. (2020, May 31). Armadillo. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/animal/
armadillo-mammal