LABORATORY 5

INTRODUCTION TO THE ANIMAL KINGDOM

PHYLUM CNIDARIA

PHYLUM PLATYHELMINTHES

PHYLUM NEMATODA

OBJECTIVES OF THE LABORATORY

1.         To review the concepts of phylogeny and classification.

2.         Introduce body plans in higher animals.

3.         To examine the basic body plan, and the feeding, respiration, circulation, and reproductive systems of the Phylum Cnidaria.

4.         To examine the basic body plan, and the feeding, respiration, circulation, excretion and reproductive systems of the Phylum Platyhelminthes.

5.         To examine the basic body plan, and the feeding, respiration, circulation, excretion and reproductive systems of the Phylum Nematoda.

INTRODUCTION

            The animal kingdom includes multicellular organisms having eukaryotic cells that lack cell walls, plastids, and photosynthetic pigments.  Most members of this kingdom take in nutrients by ingestion, and digestion of those nutrients takes place in an internal cavity.  Some take in nutrients by absorption and lack the internal digestive system.  The higher forms in the animal kingdom have evolved sophisticated levels of organization and tissue differentiation.  Reproduction for most of the organisms in the kingdom is sexual, and except for some of the lowest phyla, haploid cells occur only in gametes.  Over the next three weeks, we are going to survey  the following phyla of Kingdom Animalia: Cnidaria, Plathyhelminthes, Annelida, Arthropoda, and Chordata.  For each phylum examined, you should consider:

                        -  the basic body plan of the animals

                        -  the system employed to obtain nutrients and

                        -  the reproductive systems of the animals.