Animal Body Plans and Evolution

Learning Objectives
 Discuss some trends in animal evolution.
 Explain the differences among the animal phyla.
An Animal Body Plan
• Levels of organization
• Body symmetry
• Differentiation of germ layers
• Formation of body cavities
• Patterns of embryological development
• Segmentation
• Cephalization
• Limb formation
Body Symmetry

Planes of symmetry
Posterior end

Dorsal side

Ventral side

Anterior end

Radial symmetry Bilateral symmetry

Differentiation of Germ Layers

Ectoderm Mesoderm Endoderm

Digestive cavity Digestive tract

Formation of Body Cavities

Ectoderm Mesoderm Endoderm

Acoelomate Pseudocoelomate Coelomate

Patterns of Embryological Development
Deuterostome Anus develops
from blastopore

Ectoderm

Mesoderm

Endoderm

Blastula

Blastopore

Mouth develops
Protostome
from blastopore
Segmentation
Division of the body into numerous repeated parts or
segments in bilaterally symmetrical animals

Segmentation Segmentation No segmentation

Cephalization

• The concentration of sense

organs and nerve cells at the
anterior end

• Fusion of segments during

embryo development
concentrates the sense
organs.
Limb Formation
Comparing Body Plans, Part I
Comparing Body Plans, Part II
Animal Cladogram

Segmentation Radial
symmetry
as adults

Protostome
Backbone segmentation
Radial development
symmetry

Deuterostome
2 germ layers development
3 germs layers,
bilateral symmetry,
Multicellularity cephalization

Single-celled animal ancestor

Changes within Phyla