Kingdom Animalia: General Characteristics of Animals

The Animals

All are multicellular

All are heterotrophs (need to eat
something to obtain energy)

Almost all are mobile (free moving) at
some point during their lifetime

Almost all have cells arranged into tissues

And (the big one)…

All possess a blastula (which is

Groupings
unique to the animals)

There are a minimum of 27 Phyla of
Animals

Many of these are “minor” groups that we
will ignore

We’ll look at “major” groups…that is,
those in which major innovations appear

A hollow ball of cells formed during

embryonic development

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Phylum Porifera: The Sponges Choanoflagellates

Above are single-celled choanoflagellates.

To the right is Proterospongia, a colonial
choanoflagellate.

Basic Sponge Body Plan

Sponges have internal

“skeletons” made of
silica, glass, or other
materials

Phylum Cnidaria: Sea anemones,

corals, jellyfish

~600 my old; ~10,000 species

KEY INNOVATION 1: Radial symmetry

KEY INNOVATION 2: Tissues

Possess a gastrovascular cavity (combined
digestive organ and waste disposal chamber)

Possess a primitive nerve net

Adults can be mobile or sessile

All possess stinging cells (cnidocysts or
nematocysts)

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Radial Symmetry. Note
that there are multiple
planes which will cut
this animal into mirror
image halves.
To the right is a discharged
cnidocyst (nematocyst).
Clockwise from upper left: jellyfish; Portuguese man-o’-war; box jellyfish;
brain coral; sea pen; sea anemone
Diploblastic Tissues

Cnidarians have two
tissue layers; that
is, they are
diploblastic

They have an outer
layer (the
ectoderm) and an
inner layer (the
endoderm)
Cnidarian Body Forms
Phylum Platyhelminthes:
Flatworms, Tapeworms, Flukes
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 Note that there is just a
single plane which will
Triploblastic Tissues
cut this animal into
All animals from now
mirror image halves. on will have three
tissue layer. Such
animals are called
triploblastic

Triploblastic animals
still have an outer
ectoderm layer and
an inner endoderm
layer, but also
possess a middle
mesoderm layer.

Acoelomate Animals

A new idea we’ll bring up with this Phylum is the
presence or absence of a space, or cavity, within
the body called a coelom.

The next few groups, like the sponges and
cnidarians, lack a coelom, and are called
acoelomate

Phylum Annelida: Earthworms,

Leeches, Polychaete Worms

~550-600 my old; ~15,000 species

KEY INNOVATION 1: Segmentation

KEY INNOVATION 2: A true coelom

Possess a closed circulatory system
Clockwise from
upper left: tiger
Possess nephridia (“kidneys”)
flatworm; planarian;
Most reproduce sexually; some can reproduce
terrestrial flatworm;
fluke; tapeworm;
asexually
head end, or scolex,
Possess trochophore larvae (as do mollusks)
of a tapeworm

Some body segments can be specialized

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 A true coelom is a body cavity lined
Basic Earthworm Plan
with mesoderm tissue

Mesoderm

Ectoderm Endoderm

Polychaete worms: mobile species above; sessile fanworms below

Phylum Mollusca: Bivalves, Clams,

Earthworms above; leeches below
Oysters, Snails, Slugs, Octopuses, Squids

~545 my old; ~70,000 species

No new key innovations!!

Coelomate (have coelom around heart and
gonads)

Three body regions: head; foot; visceral mass
(with most organs)

Have a mantle which generally secretes a shell
of calcium carbonate

Most possess a scraping organ called a radula

Have trochophore larvae

Have open circulatory system

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 Mollusk Body Plan

Above: snail
radula in action!
Right: chiton
radula, tipped
with magnetite

Representative gastropods. Above: snails. Below left: limpets. Below

right: banana slug
Representative bivalves. Above
left: giant clam. Above right:
zebra mussels. Below right:
scallop (with eyes)

Representative cephalopods. Above left: octopus. Above right: squid. Less common
Below left: cuttlefish. Below right: chambered nautilus mollusks
(clockwise from
upper left): tusk
shell; chiton;
caudofoveatan;
solenogaster;
monoplacophoran

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 Phylum Nematoda: The Roundworms The Pseudocoelom

Probably ~600-625 my old; ~20,000 species

KEY INNOVATION 1: Pseudocoelomate

KEY INNOVATION 2: Complete digestive tract

Have 3 tissue layers

Have no circulatory or respiratory organs

Reproduction almost always sexual; individuals
generally male or female

Have an outer cuticle which they molt

May be free-living or parasitic; most non-
parasitic roundworms are microscopic

Able to enter “suspended animation” by drying
out if conditions are poor (called cryptobiosis)

Body plan of a typical nematode

Some representative nematodes. At

bottom left is the stomodeum, or mouth,
or a parasitic roundworm.

Pinworm (Enterobius vermicularis) Elephantiasis

Most common
roundworm parasite in
U.S.

Adults live in lower
region of large intestine

Deposit eggs in perianal
region

When ingested, eggs
hatch

Molt in small intestine,
mature in large intestine Roundworms transmitted to human by mosquito, and take up residence
in lymph nodes. This results in severe edema (swelling, or retention of
water) and disfigurement.

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 Phylum Arthropoda: Insects,
Crustaceans, Arachnids

~500-570 my old; >1,000,000 species

Largest single group of organisms known

KEY INNOVATION : Paired, jointed appendages

KEY INNOVATION 2: Chitinized external skeleton

All molt as they grow

Have open circulatory system and dorsal blood
vessel

Possess a ventral nerve cord

Body segmented

All arthropods molt (shed their

exoskeleton) to grow

A diagram of the arthropod cuticle

Subphylum Chelicerata: Arachnids,

Horseshoe Crabs

~75,000 species

Possess chelicerae for mouthparts

Generally have 8 legs

Lack antennae

2 main body regions (cephalothorax,
abdomen)
Each chelicerae is made of two pieces and can open and close. The
chelicerae of spider’s are modified as fangs (left), while scorpions have
a more basic type of chelicerae resembling small pincers (right).

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Above left: horseshoe crab. Above right: burrowing wolf spider. Below left: Above left: deer tick. Above right: harvestman (daddy longlegs). Below left:
junping spider. Below right: scorpion. dust mite. Below right: amblypygid (whip spider).

Subphylum Crustacea: Crustaceans

Left: solfugid (sun spider). Below:
vinegaroon (whip scorpion).

~55,000 species

Possess mandibles for mouthparts

Possess 2 pairs of antennae

3 pairs of feeding appendages

2 main body regions (cephalothorax,
abdomen)

Above left: mantis shrimp. Above right: goose barnacles. Below left: fiddler
crab. Below right: water flea.

Each mandible (the white areas on the crab

above) is made of a single piece. The two
mandibles must work in tandem to chew.

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 Subphylum Myriapoda: Centipedes
and Millipedes

Possess mandibles

Possess 1 pair of antennae
Above left: amphipod. Above right: ostracod. Below left: lobster. Below
1-2 pairs of legs per body segment
right: marine isopod.
(generally >20 legs total, up to several
hundred)

Subphylum Hexapoda: Insects and

Relatives

Above left: millipede. Above right: house centipede. Below left:

scolopendrid centipede. Below right: symphylan.

Above left: springtail. Above right: katydid. Below left: damselfly. Below Above left: honey bee. Above right: bee fly. Below left: Japanese beetle.
right: scorpionfly. Below right: rhinoceros beetle.

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 Phylum Echinodermata: Sea Stars,
Sea urchins, Sand dollars

~500 my old; ~7000 species

KEY INNOVATION: Deuterostome
Above left: harvester ant. Above right: tarantula hawk. Below left: luna
All are radially symmetric as adults;
moth. Below right: assassin bug.
generally bilaterally symmetric as juveniles

Possess water vascular system

Open circulatory system

Complete digestive tract

Developmental Patterns

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 Echinoderm Basics

Above left: sea star. Above right: brittle star. Below left: feather star. Below
right: sea cucumber.

Phylum Chordata: Vertebrates and Their

Relatives

~545 my old; ~62,000 species

Key Characteristics (at some point in life):
Above left: sea urchins. Above right: crinoid. Below: sand dollar.
Notochord

Dorsal hollow nerve cord

Pharyngeal gill slits (or pouches)

Endostyle (or thyroid gland)

Post-anal tail

Subphylum Urochordata: The

Chordate Characteristics
Tunicates

Sessile as adults; mobile as juveniles

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 Subphylum Cephalochordata: The
Subphylum Hyperotreti: Hagfishes
Lancelets

~60 species

Retain notochord
through adult stage

Lack jaws; mouth with
4 pairs of tentacles

Lack paired fins

Possess slime glands
and are excessively
slimy

Subphylum Vertebrata Class Cephalaspidomorphi:

Lampreys

This group includes the vast majority of
chordates

Here, the nerve cord is surrounded by a series
of hard vertebrae, made of either cartilage or
bone

Notochord lost early in development except in
jawless fishes (agnathans)

Endostyle seen only in juvenile agnathans; in
adult agnathans and other vertebrates it is the
thyroid gland

Class Chondrichthyes:
Cartilaginous Fishes

Ancestors are placoderms, first known jawed
vertebrates (at least 420 my old)

Chondrichthyes appear around 370 my ago
Above left: an ostracoderm. Above right: lampreys. Below left: lampreys on
a fish. Below right: lamprey mouth.
KEY INNOVATION: jaws

Paired fins

Have 2 chambered heart

Have skeleton of cartilage

Skin covered by placoid scales

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Above left: great white shark. Above right: hammerhead shark. Below left:
electric ray. Below right: sawfish.

Above: ratfish.
Right: whale shark.

Class Osteichthyes: Bony Fishes

Ancestors are placoderms, first known jawed
vertebrates (at least 420 my old)

Osteichthyes appear around 395 my ago

Largest group of vertebrates
Ray-finned fishes. Above left: lionfish. Above right: clownfish. Below left:

KEY INNOVATION: Skeleton made of bone flounder. Below right: seahorse.

Possess jaws

Paired fins

Have 4 chambered heart

Skin covered by dermal scales

2 groups: ray-finned fishes and lobe-finned fishes

Left: dermal scales of a

bony fish. Below:
placoid scales of a
cartilaginous fish

Lobe-finned fishes. Above: lungfish. Below left: bone structure of a lobed

fin. Below right: coelacanth.

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 Class Amphibia: Amphibians
Left is a drawing of the

Ancestors are lobe-finned fishes, and first extinct sarcopterygian
Eusthenopteron. Below
amphibian (Ichthyostega) appears around 370 is an early tetrapod,
my ago Ichthyostega.

Primarily terrestrial as adults; juveniles typically
aquatic

KEY INNOVATION: Possess 4 limbs (tetrapod)

Have 3 chambered heart

Skin lacks covering; may be used for breathing

Lack an amniotic egg

Above left: poison dart frog. Above right: marine toad. Below left: tailed Above: tadpoles. Below: caecilians.
frog. Below right: leopard frog.

Class Reptilia: Reptiles

Above left: green salamander. Above right: hellbender. Below left: lesser
siren. Below right: tiger salamander.

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 The amniotic egg allows A Taxonomic Problem
vertebrates to move
away from water into
dryer habitats. Below are

The next three groups (reptiles, birds and
representative eggs from mammals) are not really “good” taxonomic
a turtle (reptile), a groupings, since both birds and mammals have a
cowbird (bird), and an common ancestor within the reptiles
echidna (mammal)

Thus, the “real” group should be the Amniota,
and within this we should have:

Anapsids, represented now by turtles

Diapsids, represented now by all other reptiles and
birds

Synapsids, represented now by mammals

However, we’re still kind of stuck with the old
classification scheme!

Anapsids (A) have no openings, or fenestrae, behind the eye socket.

Synapsids (B) have a single fenestra, and diapsids (D) have two
fenestrae. Figure C shows a euryapsid, which has a single small fenestra;
there are no living euryapsids, but many extinct marine animals such as
plesiosaurs fall into this group.

Above left: soft-shelled turtle. Above right: Galapagos tortoise. Below left: Above left: alligator. Above right: crocodile. Below left: spectacled caiman.
sea turtle. Below right: box turtle. Below right: gharial (or gavrial).

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Above left: Gila monster. Above right: fence lizard. Below left: ringnecked Above: tuatara. Below: amphisbaenians.
snake. Below right: timber rattlesnake.

Class Aves: Birds

First appear around 150 my ago

Closely related to one group of dinosaurs
(the theropods)
Above left: grebe. Above right: tinamou. Below left: scarlet macaw. Below

KEY INNOVATION: Body covered with middle: California condor. Below right: scarlet tanager.
feathers

Endothermic (generate internal body heat)

Amniotic eggs

Possess wings

Class Mammalia: Mammals Monotremes: Egg-laying mammals

First appear around 160-200 my ago

Evolved from a group of early reptiles, the
synapsids

KEY INNOVATION 1: hair

KEY INNOVATION 2: mammary glands for
feeding young

Endothermic Above: platypus. Right: spiny
anteater, or echidna

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 Marsupials: Pouched mammals Placental Mammals

Clockwise from upper left:

kinkajou; muntjac;
Above left: a baby kangaroo coatimundi; capybara;
ursing in the pouch. Above right: river dolphin
wombat. Below right: kangaroo.

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