What Is This Module About?

This is the first of four modules prepared for you about the animal world. Three
modules are concentrated on animals without backbones and one, the last module, is on
animals with backbones. All the modules are especially prepared to equip you with
knowledge about animals. You will be made aware of the many kinds of animals in our
world. You will see how much they differ from one another in size, structure and
characteristics. The modules will also give you an idea on how the different groups of
animals affect us. This module will focus on sponges and cnidarians.
This module is made up of three lessons:
Lesson 1 – What Is an Animal?
Lesson 2 – The Pore-Bearing Animals
Lesson 3 – The Cnidarians

What Will You Learn From This Module?

After studying this module, you should be able to:

♦ identify the characteristics of animals;
♦ explain how animals are classified;
♦ recognize and describe porous animals;
♦ explain how porous animals affect people;
♦ identify and describe bag-shaped animals; and
♦ explain how bag-shaped animals affect people.

1
 Let’s See What You Already Know

Before studying this module, take this simple test first to find out how much you already
know about its topics.
Write the letter of the correct answer in the blank provided.
____1. Which of the following is not a common characteristic of animals?
a. ability to produce their own food
b. ability to digest food
c. ability to move from one place to another
d. ability to breathe
____2. Which among the following is the largest unit of classification?
a. kingdom
b. phylum
c. class
d. order
____3. What two classifications are scientific names (in the binomial system of
classification) composed of?
a. family and genus names
b. local and international names
c. order and genus names
d. species and genus names
____4. Which among the following animals have many pores on its body?
a. tapeworm
b. ascaris
c. sponge
d. earthworm
____5. Which of the following is a characteristic of porous-bodied animals?
a. hard-bodied
b. soft-bodied
c. spiny
d. rough in texture
____6. Which among the following is a bag-shaped animal?
a. sea anemone
b. sponge
c. tapeworm
d. earthworm

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 ____ 7. What do you call the process of grouping, naming and identifying plants
and animals?
a. conserving
b. preserving
c. classifying
d. collecting
____ 8. What are the powerful tentacles of jellyfish for?
a. capturing food
b. reproducing their young
c. excreting wastes
d. sensing their enemies
____ 9. Which of the following is the simplest form of animal?
a. squid
b. earthworm
c. sponge
d. insect
____10. Which of the following is a vertebrate?
a. sponge
b. fish
c. starfish
d. oyster

Well, how was it? Do you think you fared well? Compare your answers with those in the
Answer Key on page 27 to find out.
If all your answers are correct, very good! This shows that you already know much
about the topics in this module. You may still study the module to review what you already
know. Who knows, you might learn a few more new things as well.
If you got a low score, don’t feel bad. This means that this module is for you. It will
help you understand some important concepts that you can apply in your daily life. If you
study this module carefully, you will learn the answers to all the items in the test and a lot
more! Are you ready?
You may go now to the next page to begin Lesson 1.

3
 LESSON 1

What Is an Animal?
Animals are generally thought of as creatures that breathe, move and eat. Yet we cannot
define animals strictly on the basis of these characteristics because not all of them inhale and
exhale like humans do. Not all of them move like we do too. Not all of them have mouths and
digestive systems. But in spite of our lack of a completely satisfactory definition of animals and of
living examples that do not fit neatly into any informal definition, we can still categorize animals
roughly as those organisms that breathe, move and eat. Before we discuss animals further, try to
reflect first on the following questions:
1. What do animals have in common?
2. How do they differ from one another?
Find out the answers to these questions as you go on with your study of animals.

Let’s Try This

Below are pictures of some animals. Answer the riddles on the next page by choosing what
animal each riddle is referring to from the given pictures. Write your answers in the blanks
provided.

Snake Jellyfish Earthworm Ostrich

Butterfly Crab Starfish Tapeworm

Ascaris Frog Whale

4
 1. My skin is soft and sticky. I can live both on land and in water. I lay eggs in the
water. What am I? __________
2. I am a reptile, I am long and can coil. I am a predator. I attack and eat chicks,
frogs, birds and other animals. What am I? __________
3. I have tentacles and can swim. I sting my prey with my poison. Many animals are
afraid of me. What am I? __________
4. I am round. My home is your intestine. We share the food that you eat. What am I?
__________
5. I am flat, segmented and very long. My home is your intestine. We eat the same
food together. What am I? __________
6. My home is the sea. I look like a star. My skin is spiny. What am I? __________
7. I have ten legs and a flat shell or carapace. I am your favorite food. I am reddish
when cooked. What am I? __________
8 I have colorful wings. I can fly in the sky. My best friends are flowers. I siphon
their nectars. What am I? __________
9. My home is wet soil. My body is segmented. My best friends are farmers. What
am I? __________
10. I live in the sea. I love to swim. I am the biggest of them all. I am a mammal like
you. What am I? __________
11. I am a bird but cannot fly. My body is too heavy to carry. I lay big eggs. What am I?
__________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 27. How well did you
do? Did you get all the answers right?

Let’s Learn

You are now about to begin studying the most diverse kingdom of all living things, the
animal kingdom. Some animals have forms that are amusing. Others resemble creatures from
a nightmare or a horror movie. Some animals are so small that they can live inside our
bodies. Others are many meters long and live very deep under the sea. Animals can be black,
white, multicolored or almost transparent. They swim, walk, crawl, burrow or fly around
us. Although animals are different in many ways, all of them share the following basic
characteristics:
1. Animals cannot make their own food. They depend on other living organisms for
food.
2. Animals digest their food. They cannot use proteins, fats and carbohydrates
directly.
3. Many animals move from place to place. By moving around, they can find food,
escape their enemies, find better places to live in and find mates.
4. Animals have many cells. Their different cells carry out functions such as
digestion and reproduction.
5. Animal cells are eukaryotic. Their cells have nuclei surrounded by a membrane
and various organelles.

5
 But before we start our journey to the animal world, take a look first at the illustration
below and see how the different groups of animals are related.

Arthropods Insects Chordates

Birds

Centipedes Reptiles
Millipedes

Crustaceans Mammals

Arachnids Amphibians

Annelids
Fishes
Mollusks

Lancelets
Tunicates
Roundworms

Flatworms
Echinoderms

Cnidarians Sponges
Protist ancestors

The evolutionary tree of the animal world

The figure above shows us how the two main groups of animals developed from the
most basic types of living organisms—the protists. From this, we can see too which animals
are classified as arthropods and which are chordates.
Arthropods are members of the phylum Arthropoda which contains 80% of all known
animal species. They all have exoskeletons, jointed legs and segmented bodies. Examples of
these include:
1. cnidarians — radially symmetrical organisms that have two distinct cell layers
and no distinct head;
2. flatworms — characterized by very flat, thin bodies having no spaces between the
layers of tissue inside their bodies;
3. roundworms — characterized by a one-way digestive tract and a body cavity;
4. mollusks — includes such varied organisms as oysters, snails and squids;
5. annelids — segmented worms that have coelums; earthworms;
6. arachnids — a major class of chelicerates that includes spiders, scorpions, mites and
ticks;
7. crustaceans — mandibulates with great degrees of specialization in various body
segments;
8. millipedes — diplopods; literally, “millipede” means “thousand feet,” even though
in reality, few millipedes have more than a few hundred feet;

6
 9. centipedes — chilopods; literally, “centipede” means “hundred feet”; may have
between 15 and 150 pairs of legs and are usually only a few centimeters long; and
10. insects — typical arthropods which have exoskeletons, jointed legs and
segmented bodies but have three major body sections, the anterior head, the
middle thorax and the posterior abdomen.
Chordates, on the other hand, are organisms with notochords, dorsal nerve chords and
gill slits. Examples of these include:
1. sponges — have specialized cell types that are not so interdependent that they
would die if separated from the organisms as a whole;
2. echinoderms — marine organisms having tube feet and endoskeletons that have
spiny projections extending through the epidermis;
3. tunicates — have all the characteristics of chordates but lack backbones;
4. lancelets — organisms that normally bury all but their heads into the sand;
5. fishes — free-swimming organisms;
6. amphibians — cold-blooded vertebrates belonging to the class Amphibia; they
hatch as fishlike eggs and transform into adults that can live on land;
7. reptiles — snakes, lizards, turtles, alligators, etc. which reproduce on land by
laying eggs;
8. mammals — most of these develop their young internally and after giving birth
nurse them on milk; a few though hatch from eggs; have hair or fur at some time
during their lives; and
9. birds — have feathers and bodies adapted for flight; reproduce by laying eggs.

Let’s Review

Match the items in Column A with their descriptions in Column B. Write only the letters
of the correct answers in the blanks provided.
Column A Column B
___1. cnidarians a. a major class of chelicerates that includes
spiders, scorpions, mites and ticks
___2. arachnids
b. cold-blooded vertebrates belonging to the class
___3. sponges Amphibia
___4. amphibians c. radially symmetrical organisms that have two
distinct cell layers and no distinct head
___5. mammals
d. have specialized cell types that are not so
interdependent that they would die if separated
from the organisms as a whole
e. most of these develop their young internally and
after giving birth nurse them on milk
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 27. How well did you
do? Did you get all the answers right?
7
 Let’s Learn

Scientists have identified and named over one million species of animals. Some
estimate that there are five to ten million more to identify and name. Have you ever
wondered how and why animals are grouped?
Animals are classified based on:

Structure

Chemical Food
Animal classification
makeup needs

Behavior

Let us first discuss how animals are classified on the basis of similarities of body
parts. Look at the illustration below.

A B

A1 A2 B1 B2

How are these animals classified?

You can probably think of a number of ways into which the organisms above could be
grouped. Try to use structural similarities as a basis for grouping. In other words, examine the
organisms’ general appearance and arrangement of body parts and try to put similar organisms
together.
Notice that the animals in the middle frame are grouped according to number of legs.
Those in Frame A have three pairs of legs each, while those in Frame B have four. Notice
that each group is further divided into smaller groups. Under Frame A, the organisms with
wings were grouped (Frame A1) as well as those which do not (Frame A2 ) . Under Frame
B, the organisms that have two main body parts were grouped (Frame B1) and those which

8
have only one main body part were also put together (Frame B2). With each sorting, you can
see that the organisms in the group become more and more alike. For better understanding,
look at the concept map below:

Group of animals

Animals with three

pairs of legs

Animals with wings Animals without Anim

wings bo

Let’s Try This

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. What four factors do biologists study when classifying animals?
a. _____________________________________________________________
b. _____________________________________________________________
c. _____________________________________________________________
d. _____________________________________________________________
2. What was the basis for the classification system shown in the previous activity?
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 27. How well did you
do? Did you get the answers right?

9
 Let’s Learn

The animal kingdom is divided into nine major phyla and more or less 21 minor phyla.
In this module, we will only concentrate on the nine major phyla.
The nine major phyla of the animal kingdom are: Porifera, Coelenterata,
Platyhelminthes, Aschelminthes, Molluska, Annelida, Arthropoda, Echinodermata and
Chordata. All these animals have the characteristics that we mentioned at the beginning of the
lesson. So how does a scientist begin to classify a new animal he/she encounters?
The first step is to determine if the animal has a backbone or not. Animals with
backbones are called vertebrates. Some examples of vertebrates are fishes, humans, whales
and snakes. About 95% of animals are invertebrates or animals that do not have backbones.
Sponges, jellyfish, worms, insects and clams are examples of these. The next thing that a
scientist will look at is the arrangement of the animal’s body parts or the animal’s
symmetry. Some animals have body parts arranged around a central point. These animals
are said to have radial symmetry. Sea anemones and starfish are examples of these. Most
animals though have bilateral symmetry or their body parts are arranged in the same way on
either side of their bodies. Bilateral animals can be divided into right and left halves by
drawing an imaginary line down the length of their bodies. Animals that do not have definite
shapes are called asymmetrical animals.

Let’s Try This

Apply what you just learned by classifying the animals below based on structural
similarities. Use the concept map on the next page for this.

Snake Butterfly Fish Spider

10
 snake, butterfly, fish, spider

Animals with Animal

backbones 3.
1. __________ 4.
2. __________

Animal with Animal without Animal with s

gills gills legs
5. __________ 6. __________ 7. _________

Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 28. How well did you
do?

Let’s Learn

In Carolus Linnaeus’ time, there were only two kingdoms—the plant kingdom and the animal
kingdom. The system worked well until further advances were made in classifying organisms. Biologists
now use a five-kingdom system. In fact, a six-kingdom system is now being proposed. The five-
kingdom system we now use includes the kingdoms Protista, Monera, Fungi, Plantae and
Animalia. A kingdom is the largest group of classification. It is subdivided into several phyla
(phylum, singular). Each phylum is divided into classes, which are further divided into orders.
Orders are divided into families and families into genera. Each genus (genera, singular) is
divided into species. The species is the basic unit of classification.

Let’s Try This

Make a concept map of the various classifications of living things below from the
biggest to the smallest group.

Compare your concept map with the one in the Answer Key on page 28. How well did
you do?
11
 Let’s Learn

What would happen if we didn’t use names? For example, what if somebody asks you
about something or someone and instead of using its or his/her name, he/she gives a
complete description just so you’d understand what or who he/she is talking about? That
would be too much work, don’t you think? Names give us a quick and easy way of
identifying things or people.
This is precisely the reason why over 200 years ago, a Swedish naturalist, Carolus
Linnaeus, organized a simple naming system for animals that we still use today. He gave each
animal species a scientific name. Each scientific name is composed of two words, the genus
and species names. This system is called the binomial system of naming organisms. The names
are in Latin. An example of this is the scientific name for the domestic cat, Felis domesticus.
The genus name is Felis and the species name is domesticus. Using scientific names for
animals ensures that there can be no confusion. Anyone who sees the words Felis domesticus
will know that what is being referred to is a cat.

Let’s Review
Answer the following questions briefly.
1. Who was the proponent of the binomial system of classification? What is the binomial
system of classification?
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
2. What is the purpose of naming organisms?
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 28. How well did you
do? Did you get the answers right?

12
 Let’s See What You Have Learned

Enumerate the following:

1. Three basic characteristics of animals:
a. _____________________________________________________________
b. _____________________________________________________________
c. _____________________________________________________________
2. Animals can be classified according to:
a. _____________________________________________________________
b. _____________________________________________________________
c. _____________________________________________________________
d. _____________________________________________________________
3. Three kinds of arthropods:
a. _____________________________________________________________
b. _____________________________________________________________
c. _____________________________________________________________
4. Three kinds of chordates:
a. _____________________________________________________________
b. _____________________________________________________________
c. _____________________________________________________________
5. Levels of classification:
a. _____________________________________________________________
b. _____________________________________________________________
c. _____________________________________________________________
d. _____________________________________________________________
e. _____________________________________________________________
f. _____________________________________________________________
g. _____________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on pages 28 and 29. How well
did you do? Did you get a perfect score? If you did, then you learned a lot from this lesson. If
you didn’t, don’t worry. Just review the parts of the lesson you didn’t understand very well
before going to Lesson 2.

13
Let’s Remember

♦ Animals are organisms that eat, breathe, move and digest food.
♦ There are more or less 1.5 million species of animals that have been identified
and many more are being discovered.
♦ Animals can be grouped based on similarity in structure, chemical makeup,
behavior and food needs.
♦ There are seven units or levels of classification with the kingdom as the largest
unit and the species as the most basic unit.
♦ Originally, there were only two kingdoms established by Linnaeus. However, due
to further advances in science, the number was increased to five. Now, we are
using a five-kingdom system. However, a sixth kingdom is already being
proposed.
♦ There are nine major phyla in the animal kingdom. The simplest of these include
the pore-bearing animals, while the most complex is composed of the mammals.
♦ Carolus Linnaeus introduced the binomial system of classification. In this system,
he uses two levels of classification in naming each organism — the genus and
species names.
♦ The scientific names given to organisms are in Latin.

14
 LESSON 2

The Pore-Bearing Animals

Have you ever visited large aquariums or gone snorkeling with your friends? If so, I’m
sure you have already seen some of the animals that we will discuss in this lesson. Here we
will take up the simplest group of animals, the sponges or the pore-bearing animals.
Sponges are among the most ancient of all the animals that are alive today. The first sponge
ever reported to exist dates back to around 580 million years ago. Sponges belong to the
phylum Porifera which literally means “pore bearers.” Sponges have tiny openings all over
their bodies.
Of the million or more existing animal species, 95% have no backbones and are
classified as invertebrates. They have a wide variety of shapes and sizes, from
microscopic ones to a giant squid measuring up to 55 ft. long. It is said that such squids are
big enough to fight with whales that try to prey upon them. Many of these invertebrates live
in the ocean. Others live in freshwater, on land, in the soil and even on the bodies of other
animals.

Let’s Try This

If you live near the sea, it will be convenient for you to perform this activity. It will
acquaint you with the sponges. Be sure to take the necessary precautionary measures. Stroll
along the beach and look for organisms similar to the one below. Do not touch them. Just
observe them. If you want to touch them wear gloves because some of them may be itchy due
to spongin and spicules.

Sponges

If you don’t live near the sea, you may just look at display specimens in a museum.

15
 Let’s Learn

Callyspongia

Poterion
Euplectella
Leucosolenia

The most common sponges in the sea

Years ago, scientists thought sponges were plants. Why? Simply because they don’t
move from one place to another like other animals. They remain steady in one place or stay
attached to a substrate. There are around 3000 species of sponges. The most common of
these are the bath sponges. They are considered the simplest multicellular animals. They
have tiny holes or pores in their bodies. They are usually found in the sea. They have two
layers of cells, an outer layer and an inner layer. They take in food by “engulfing” them.
They usually feed on particles suspended in water like plankton and some bacteria. They
have wide openings known as oscula (osculum, singular) or openings where food pass
through. They digest their food in gastrovascular cavities much like our stomachs. They do
not have anuses and so the food they fail to digest pass through oscula too.
Some groups of sponges grow on the bodies of other animals like corals and on the
shells of mollusks. In shellfish farms, sponges are unwanted since they can grow luxuriantly
on the shells of mollusks and badly affect them.
Proper care should be taken in handling sponges since their bodies contain thousands of
spicules or needle-like structures which can cause irritation to one’s skin. These spicules are
composed of siliceous or glasslike materials and calcium carbonate. The Venus flower
basket is an example of a beautiful sponge with siliceous spicules.

Venus flowerbasket

16
 Aside from spicules, sponges’ bodies are also composed of collagen and fibrils of
collagen collectively known as spongin. This gives support to the sponge and prevents it
from collapsing. They are ideal scrubbing materials. They have only a few enemies. Their
unique skeletal framework and often noxious odor or taste protect them from most potential
predators who find them unattractive and unpalatable.

Let’s Try This

Answer the following questions briefly.
1. How do sponges take in food?
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
2. Why are sponges a problem in tahong and other shellfish industries?
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
3. What makes sponges ideal for scrubbing?
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 29. How well did you
do? Did you get all the answers right?

Let’s Learn

Do you know how sponges can affect our lives? Read on to find out.
♦ Not all sponges are beneficial to humans. Some may grow on shellfish like oysters
and mussels preventing them from getting their food. This may even result in their
death. Therefore, sponges can indirectly affect humans by harming the oyster
industry.
♦ Most sponges are beneficial to humans because of the presence of unique skeletal
structures making them ideal for scrubbing and cleaning dirty materials in the kitchen.
♦ The family of sponges, popularly called boring sponges, are important in
“cleaning up” the ocean floor.
♦ Since the time of the Greeks and Romans, humans have been using dried and
cleaned bodies of sponges in bathing. Most of the sponges you see in supermarkets
today are artificial but natural bath sponges are still available.
♦ Now, scientists are trying to discover other uses of sponges especially in
manufacturing chemicals.

17
 Let’s Think About This

Based on what you have just learned, are sponges more beneficial or harmful to
humans? Why?
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
Have your Instructional Manager check your work. Ask him/her for some feedback on
your answers.

Let’s See What You Have Learned

Match the terms in Column A with their definitions/descriptions in Column B. Write the
letters of the correct answers only in the blanks provided.
Column A Column B
______ 1. Sponges a. Literally means “pore bearers”
______ 2. Porifera b. A flexible protein fiber that makes up the
skeletons of some sponges
______ 3. Invertebrates
c. A mouthlike aperture in a sponge
______ 4. Spongin d. Important kind of sponge because they
______ 5. Spicules “clean up” the ocean floor
e. Aquatic, usually marine, invertebrate
______ 6. Osculum multicellular animals that consist of a
______ 7. Venus flowerbasket large cluster of cells attached to a solid
object such as a rock and which usually
______ 8. Boring sponges live in colonies
f. Animals that do not possess backbones
g. Needlelike projections that form the firm
part of sponges
h. A deep-sea sponge with a skeleton made
of glassy spicules

Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 29. How well did you
do? Did you get a perfect score? If you did, then you learned a lot from this lesson and are
ready to move on to the next one. If not, don’t worry. Just review the parts of this lesson that
you didn’t understand very well before going to Lesson 3.

18
Let’s Remember

♦ Sponges are the simplest kinds of animals. They have no organs, only tissues.
♦ There are around 3000 living species of sponges.
♦ Bath sponges are the most common kind of sponge.
♦ The osculum serves as the mouth of a sponge. This is a large opening on top of a
sponge.
♦ Sponges produce skeletons in the form of spongin and spicules.
♦ Sponges vary in shape and color. They are one of the most colorful animals in the
sea.
♦ In ancient times, the principal use of sponges was for bathing. Now, they are being
tested for medical/chemical uses.

19
 LESSON 3

The Cnidarians

If you live close to the sea, you will find not only sponges but cnidarians as well. In
some books, they are popularly referred to as coelenterates or bag-shaped animals.
Cnidarians include many animals with brilliant colors and unusual shapes. Delicate jellyfish
float in ocean currents. Brightly-colored sea anemones cling to rocks, looking more like
underwater flowers than animals. These beautiful and fascinating animals are found all over
the world but most species live only in the sea. Our seas abound with them, in fact, we have
beautiful sea anemones and jellyfish. This lesson will talk about the different cnidarians. We
will talk about their different kinds as well as how they affect our lives.

Let’s Try This

If you live close to the sea, look for and examine these invertebrates. Take the
necessary precautions though. Be very careful not to provoke or intimidate them. They might
hurt you. Do this activity during low tide. Do not forget to equip yourself with a glass-bottom
box, a trowel and a pair of forceps or gloves.
Use the glass-bottom box to locate these animals. Do you see the beautifully colored
sea anemones? They are stationary but with very movable tentacles. If you disturb their
surroundings, they tend to react and hide their tentacles. Do not touch them for they might hurt
your hand with stinging cells. Other cnidarians are stationary like the corals. How many
types of corals do you see? Try to look for other cnidarians. See if jellyfish are available. If
you see one, do not go very close to it. It might sting you. Just observe its body movements.
Notice that unlike the sea anemones, jellyfish are very mobile. They move from one place to
another.
If you do not live close to the sea, just study the illustrations of cnidarians below. Note
their similarities and differences. One similarity that is very noticeable is the presence of
tentacles or arms. In corals, however, such tentacles are not visible because their polyps are
very small.

Sea anemone Jellyfish Coral

20
 Let’s Learn

There are more than 9000 different species of cnidarians, the Latin term for “stinging
cells.” Most species are marine while few are terrestrial. The most common freshwater
species of cnidarians is the hydra. This is only around 5 mm long. Some cnidarians are bag-
shaped like the sea anemones. Their bodies are hollow with one opening at the top, the
mouth or osculum. Inside their bodies are gastrovascular cavities where extracellular
digestion of food takes place. They have circular tentacles that can shoot out stingers or
nematocysts that can poison and paralyze other organisms.
Their tentacles can capture their prey which are then broken down as food with the help
of digestive substances. This method of capturing food is best demonstrated by sea anemones
and corals.
Have you ever seen coral decorations? Did you know that these are only secretions or
skeletons formed by the animals that formerly occupied it.

Let’s Read

Do you want to find out how the coral decorations mentioned earlier are made? Read
on then.

Preparing Corals for Display

1. Collect fresh corals from the sea.
2. Soak them in plastic containers with ordinary tap water for around two
days. This process will kill the animals or polyps living in them.
3. On the third day, change the water and clean the corals using a brush.
4. Soak them in water with some bleaching agents. This will make your corals
whitish in color.
5. Rinse and air-dry your specimens.
6. Now they are ready for display.
7. Some people mix dye with the water to make the corals more colorful.

Collecting corals was banned years ago to preserve our natural resources. However,
for educational purposes, a few can still be collected.

21
 Let’s Learn

The most harmful species of jellyfish is Chironex flickerii. This is a jellyfish found in
the tropical seas of Australia. This species can kill a person it stings in 3 to 20 minutes after
the attack.
Remember when a total blackout occurred in Luzon because of the uncontrolled growth of
jellyfish. They damaged the power plant near their habitat. The heat the plant emitted must
have triggered their increase in number. Jellyfish flourish during the summer when seawater is
warm. The illustration below presents the life cycle of a jellyfish.

Ovary Medusa
Hydranth Perisarc Testis
Coenosarc

Tentacles
Medusa
buds
Blastostyle Mouth Sperm
Egg
Gonopore
Hypostome

Hydrotheca

Gonotheca Blastula

Gonangium Free-swimming
planula
Hydrorhiza

Obelia colony
The life cycle of a jellyfish

Let us define some of the terms in the illustration above.

1. ovary — the female reproductive organ
2. medusa — a bell-shaped, free-swimming body form found in cnidarians
3. testis — a male gonad that produces sperm
4. sperm — male reproductive cells made in the testes (testis, singular)
5. egg — the female reproductive cell or gamete
6. blastula — a small, fluid-filled ball of cells that is an early stage in the
development of an embryo
7. planula — a ciliated larval type found in cnidarians
8. obelia colony — an example of a cnidarian
After learning about the important terms that have to do with the life cycle of the
jellyfish, let us now look at how jellyfish go about their lives.

22
 Jellyfish exist in one of two body forms. One form is known as a polyp, the other body
form is the medusa. Their life cycle alternates between these two stages. Medusae (medusa,
singular) reproduce sexually. In most medusae, sexes are separate with females producing
eggs and males producing sperm. After fertilization, the zygote develops into a blastula
which elongates to form a planula. The planula eventually attaches itself to the bottom of the
ocean floor where it grows into a polyp. The polyp reproduces asexually by forming
medusae which develop one on top of another. When the medusae form egg and sperm, the
cycle is complete.

Let’s Learn

Did you know that cnidarians have various economic uses.

♦ They are important in island formation and building reefs. The reefs serve as
shields for islands against strong waves and serve as “nurseries” for the millions
of fishes in the ocean.
♦ Red and black corals can be made into precious jewelry.
♦ Coral reefs are also valuable tourist attractions.
♦ Some cnidarians are used in medical research. Corals are now being studied to
provide us with anti-cancer drugs.

Let’s Review

From the previous activity you will see that cnidarians have many economic uses. How then
can you in your own way preserve them? List down some measures you can take in the space
provided below.
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
Have your Instructional Manager check your list. Ask him/her for some feedback.

23
 Let’s See What You Have Learned

Match the terms in Column A with their definitions/descriptions in Column B. Write the
letters of the correct answers only in the blanks provided.
Column A Column B

______ 1. Cnidarians a. A freshwater polyp with a tubelike

body and tentacles round the mouth,
______ 2. Hydra when cut or divided
remarkable for its ability to multiply
______ 3. Gastrovascular cavities b. A kind of cnidarian
______ 4. Obelia colony c. A small, fluid-filled ball of cells that
is an early stage in the development of
______ 5. Medusa an embryo
______ 6. Blastula d. Radially symmetrical organisms that
have two distinct cell layers and no
______ 7. Planula
distinct head
e. Where extracellular digestion of food
takes place
f. A bell-shaped, free-swimming body
form found in cnidarians
g. A ciliated larval type found in
cnidarians

Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on page 29. How well did you
do? Did you get a perfect score? If you did, then you learned a lot from this lesson. If you
didn’t, don’t worry. Just review the parts of the lesson you didn’t understand very well
before going to the next part of the module.

24
 Let’s Remember
♦ Cnidarians are soft- bodied animals with tentacles used for stinging their enemies.
♦ There are more or less 9000 different species of cnidarians. They are mostly
marine but with a few terrestrial exceptions.
♦ Some cnidarians are stationary while others are mobile. Cnidarians show a
variety of shapes and colors. They are simple, mostly bag-shaped animals. They
have tentacles to capture their prey with.
♦ Polyps secrete substances that form the exoskeletons of corals.
♦ Some species of jellyfish like Chironex flickerii are deadly. They can kill their
victims in 30 seconds.
♦ Some cnidarians are now being studied for medical purposes.
Well, this is the end of the module! Congratulations for finishing it. Did you like it? Did
you learn anything useful from it? A summary of its main points is given below to help you
remember them better.

Let’s Sum Up

This module tells us that:

♦ Animals are organisms that eat, breathe, move and digest food.
♦ There are more or less 1.5 million species of animals that have been identified
and many more are being discovered.
♦ Animals can be group based on similarity in structure, chemical makeup, behavior
and food needs.
♦ There are seven units or levels of classification with the kingdom as the largest
unit and the species as the most basic unit.
♦ Originally, there were only two kingdoms established by Linnaeus. However, due
to further advances in science, the number was increased to five. Now, we are
using a five-kingdom system although adding a sixth kingdom is already being
proposed.
♦ There are nine major phyla in the animal kingdom. The simplest of these include
the pore-bearing animals while the most complex is composed of the mammals.
♦ Carolus Linnaeus introduced the binomial system of classification. In this system,
he uses two levels of classification in naming each organism—the genus and
species names.
♦ The scientific names given to organisms are in Latin.
♦ Sponges are the simplest kinds of animals. They have no organs, only tissues.
♦ There are around 3000 living species of organisms.

25
 ♦ Bath sponges are the most common kind of sponges.
♦ The osculum serves as the mouth of a sponge. This is a large opening on top of a
sponge.
♦ Sponges produce skeletons in the form of spongin and spicules.
♦ Sponges vary in shape and color. They are one of the most colorful animals in the
sea.
♦ In ancient times, the principal use of sponges was for bathing. Now, they are being
tested for medical/chemical uses.
♦ Cnidarians are soft-bodied animals with tentacles used for stinging their enemies.
♦ There are more or less 9000 different species of cnidarians. They are mostly
marine but with a few terrestrial exceptions.
♦ Some cnidarians are stationary while others are mobile.
♦ Cnidarians show a variety of shapes and colors. They are simple, mostly bag-
shaped animals. They have tentacles to capture their prey with.
♦ Polyps secrete substances that form the exoskeletons of corals.
♦ Some species of jellyfish like Chironex flickerii are deadly. They can kill their
victims in 30 seconds.
♦ Some cnidarians are now being studied for medical purposes.

What Have You Learned?

Answer the following questions briefly.

1. Give three common characteristics that distinguish animals from other living
organisms.
a. _____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
b. _____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
c. _____________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________
2. Define what a sponge is.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
3. Define what a cnidarian is.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Compare your answers with those in the Answer Key on pages 29 and 30. How well
did you do? Did you get a perfect score? If you did, that’s very good. You may then move on
to the next module. If you didn’t, don’t worry. Just review the parts of this module you didn’t
understand very well before studying another module.

26
 Answer Key

A. Let’s See What You Already Know (pages 2–3)

1. (a) Animals cannot produce their own food.
2. (a) The kingdom is the largest unit of classification.
3. (s) The binomial classification system makes use of the species and genus names.
4. (c) A sponge is also known as a pore-bearing animal.
5. (b) Pore bearers are soft-bodied.
6. (a) A sea anemone is a bag-shaped animal.
7. (c) This process is known as classifying.
8. (a) They use tentacles to capture food.
9. (c) The sponge is the simplest form of animal.
10. (b) A fish is a vertebrate.

B. Lesson 1
Let’s Try This (pages 4–5)
1. frog
2. snake
3. jellyfish
4. ascaris
5. tapeworm
6. starfish
7. crab
8. butterfly
9. earthworm
10. whale
11. ostrich
Let’s Review (page 7)
1. (c)
2. (a)
3. (d)
4. (b)
5. (e)
Let’s Try This (page 9)
1. Biologists classify animals based on four factors, namely, structure, chemical
makeup, behavior and food needs.
2. The basis of classification in the previous activity is similarity in structure.

27
Let’s Try This (pages 10–11)
1. snake
2. fish
3. butterfly
4. spider
5. fish
6. snake
7. butterfly
8. spider
Let’s Try This (page 11)
Kingdom

Phylum

Class

Order

Family

Genus

Species
Let’s Review (page 12)
1. Carolus Linnaeus
2. To avoid confusion and facilitate communication
Let’s See What You Have Learned (page 13)
1. a. Animals cannot make their own food.
b. Animals digest their food.
c. Many animals move from place to place to find food, escape their enemies,
find better places to live in and find mates.
(There may be other answers to this, just refer to page 5.)
2. a. structure
b. food needs
c. behavior
d. chemical makeup
3. a. centipedes
b. millipedes
c. crustaceans
(There may be other answers to this, just refer to the illustration on page 6.)

28
 4. a. birds
b. reptiles
c. mammals
(There may be other answers to this, just refer to the illustration on page 6.)
5. a. kingdom
b. phylum
c. class
d. order
e. family
f. genus
g. species

C. Lesson 2
Let’s Try This (page 17)
1. Through the osculum
2. They prevent shellfish from getting food causing them to die
3. The presence of spongin and spicules
Let’s See What You Have Learned (page 18)
1. (e)
2. (a)
3. (f)
4. (b)
5. (g)
6. (c)
7. (h)
8. (d)

D. Lesson 3
Let’s See What You Have Learned (page 24)
1. (d)
2. (a)
3. (e)
4. (b)
5. (f)
6. (c)
7. (g)

E. What Have You Leaned? (page 26)

1. a. Animals cannot make their own food.
b. Animals digest their food.
c. Many animals move from place to place to find food, escape their
enemies, find better places to live in and find mates.
(There may be other answers to this, just refer to page 5.)

29
 2. A sponge is any of several hundred different species of aquatic, usually
marine, invertebrate multicellular animals that consist of a large cluster of
cells attached to a solid object such as a rock and which usually live in
colonies.
3. A cnidarian is a radially symmetrical organism that has two distinct cell
layers and no distinct head.

Glossary
Bilateral symmetry Having identical parts of the body when an imaginary line divides
an object’s body vertically.
Calcium carbonate Usually insoluble, whitish and coarse composition of species.
Collagen A tough, fibrous protein found in some sponges that make them ideal for
scrubbing.
Classification The process of grouping living things.
Gastrovascular cavity The cavity in coelenterates that functions both in digestion and
circulation and has a single opening serving as both mouth and anus.
Invertebrate An animal without a backbone.
Medusa The jellyfish or free-swimming stage in the life cycle of cnidarians.
Nematocyst A stinging structure on the tentacle of a cnidarian that is used to paralyze
and kill its prey.
Osculum The mouth or the excurrent opening in a sponge.
Polyp Sessile, flower-like cnidarian.
Phylum The second largest unit of classification used for living things.
Radial symmetry Arrangement of the body parts of an organism in such a way that
they repeat around an imaginary line drawn through the center of the organism’s body.
Sessile Immobile.
Siliceous Glasslike materials composed of silica.
Species The basic unit of classification.
Spicule One of the minute, siliceous skeletal bodies found in sponges and corals.
Spongin Fibrous, collagenous materials making up the skeletal network of sponges.
Vertebral column Backbone which encloses and protects the nerve cord.

30
 References
Balzer, L. Introduction to Biology. Glenview, Illinois: Scott, Foresman and Co., 1986.
Campbell, N. Biology. Fourth ed. U.S.A.: Benjamin Cummings, Inc., 1996.
Hickman, C. and L. Roberts. Animal Diversity. Chicago, U.S.A.: Wm. C. Brown
Publishers, Inc., 1995.
Hopson, J. and N. Wessels. Essentials of Biology. U.S.A.: McGraw-Hill Publishing,
Inc., 1990.
Miller, K. and J. Levine. Biology. New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 1991.
Ortleb, Daniel E. and D. Biggs. Life Science. U.S.A.: McGraw-Hill Publishing, Inc.,
1994.
Wong, H. and M. Dolmatz. Biology: Key Ideas. New York, U.S.A.: Globe Book
Company, Inc., 1986.

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