PHYLUM CHORDATA
-In humans, the post-anal tail is vestigial, that
- All have gill slits that lead into the throat or
pharynx
- have blood enclosed in blood vessels,
although they may not have blood cells.
-have a tail that contains no internal organs
and extends beyond the backbone and anus.
CHARACTERISTICS
-the phylum Chordata  share four key feature:
notochord, a dorsal hollow nerve cord,
pharyngeal slits, and a post-anal tail
-In some groups, some of these are present only
during embryonic development.
NOTOCHORD
- Flexible, rod-like structures
- made of cartilage that runs between an
animals digestive tube and its nerve chord.
-In most vertebrates, a skeleton develops
around the notochord and allows the muscles to
attach.
- In humans, the notochord is reduced to the
disks of cartilage that we have between our
vertebrate.
DORSAL HOLLOW NERVE
-Hollow, tubular structure derived from
ectoderm
-Located dorsal to the notochord in chordates.
-Tube made of fibers
PHARYNGEAL GILLS SLITS
- openings in the pharynx, that extend to the
outside environment.
- all Chordates have pharyngeal slits
-they function as filters for feeding.
POST-ANAL TAIL
-muscular, posterior elongation of the body,
extending beyond the anus.
-contains
skeletal elements and muscles: provide a
source of locomotion in aquatic species, such as
fishes
-in terrestrial vertebrates, helps with balance,
courting, and signaling when danger is near.
is, reduced in size and nonfunctional.
REPRODUCTION
-They are sexual: meaning that an egg is
fertilized by a sperm.
-few animals are asexual: without sex
-some fish and reptiles reproduced through
Parthenogenesis.
-Most chordates are Dioecious.
But some chordates are Hermaphroditic
- Terrestrial species: Internal Fertilization
-Aquatic Species: External Fertilization
-Animals that develop in eggs outside their
mothers body are called Oviparous.
SUBPHYLA OF CHORDATES
SUBPHYLUM CEPHALOCHORDATA
- Also called Acrania.
- possess a notochord,dorsal hollows, nerve
chord, pharyngeal slits and a post-anal tail.
-EXTINCT MEMBER:
Pikaia- the oldest known cephalochordate.
-EXTANT MEMBER:
Lancelets- named for their blade-like shaped.
-suspension feeders
SUBPHYLUM UROCHORDATA
-Also referred to as Tunicate or Sea Squirts.
Tunic- tunicate derives from the cellulose-like
carbohydrate material
- they only have pharyngeal slits
-hermaphroditic
-live a sessile existence on the ocean floor and
are suspension feeders
SUBPHYLUM VERBRATA
-Also referred to as Craniate.
-A cranium is a bony, cartilaginous or fibrous
structure;
- and sorrounds the brain, jaw and facial bones.
-Vertebrata is named for the vertebral column,
composed of vertebrae.
-Closed circulatory system.
-Vertebrates are the largest group of chordates
-Constitute classes in the subphylum Vertebrata:
Agnatha, Chondrichthyes, Osteichthyes,
Amphibia, Reptilia, Aves and Mammalia.