Platyhelminthes Flatworms by Devin La Pierre and Paige

Platyhelminthes (Flatworms) by Devin La. Pierre and Paige Mc. Jannet

Platyhelminthes • Soft bodied, unsegmented worms • Can live almost anywhere • On land, in fresh and marine water

Body Symmetry and Structure • Bilaterally Symmetrical • Left and right sides are mirror images of each other • Central Nervous System. Brain and nerve cord w/ ganglia at anterior end • Scolex-anterior end of tapeworm

Feeding • Carnivores • Aquatic animals • Scavengers • Recently dead animals

Circulation • Diffusion • No circulation system This Photo by Unknown author is licensed under CC BY.

Excretion • Diffusion • Flame Cells • specialized excretory cell that function like kidneys • Through Mouth • No anus

Response • Flatworms have ganglia which controls their nervous system • They have specialized cells that can detect external chemicals or food • They also have eyespots that can see changes of the amount of light in their environment

Movement • Muscle cells or cilia/sensory organelles • Central Nervous System

Reproduction • Asexual • Sexual • Hermaphrodite • Proglottid

Respiration • Diffusion

Major Classes of Platyhelminthes • Trematoda • Flukes: parasites • Turbellaria • 3, 000 species; nonparasitic • Cestoda • 1, 500 species of tapeworms

Vocab • Proglottid-each segment in a worm containing a set of matured reproductive organs. • Pharynx-a membrane-lined cavity that connects the mouth and nose to the esophagus • Hermaphrodite-a person or animal with both reproductive organs

Sources • https: //zoology 2014 underdahl. weebly. com/platyhelminthes. html