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The platyhelminthes phylum consists organisms commonly known as flatworms, has over 30,000 known species, all living in various different habitats. These organisms are bilaterally symmetrical and are flat organisms that can be either long or short, and come in different colors. These organisms can be either free-living, while most platyhelminthes are parasitic. These organisms are ecologically important since they keep the amount of algae, protozoans, and zooplankton in an healthy state. Some species such as the tapeworm can grow to be longer than the size of a school bus.
MOVEMENT: These organisms can move in two different ways. They will either thump their epidermal cilia, located on the outside of their bodies, to move along surfaces. Cilia helps these organisms glide in aquatic habitats. Also, when trying to move forwards, they use many muscles to twist and turn their bodies.
BODY COVERNINGS: Platyhelminthes have three layers: the ectoderm, the endoderm, and between these two layers is the mesoderm. The outer layer of these organisms’ bodies has cilia on it, which is used to protect themselves. These organisms have an organ system level of organization, meaning that groups of two or more tissue work together to make this organism function.
SUPPORT: Platyhelminthes are invertebrate, so the do not have a back bone to keep their shape. These organisms maintain their shape due to the lack of water filling their bodies, thus keeping them flat.
NUTRITION: Free-living platyhelminthes obtain their food by simply eating it through an opening known as the gastrovascular cavity. This serves as a mouth, letting the food travel through a channel of digestive tracts, which then disperse to the rest of the organism’s body. They eat other organism’s such as small worms, insects and microscopic matter. Parasitic platyhelminthes obtain their food from animals by attaching to their host’s digestive tract and feeding of the nutrients from their host. When these parasitic organisms obtain food from humans, they will attach to the intestine and absorb nutrients from the food that the human consumes.
RESPIRATION: Platyhelminthes do not have a formal respiratory system, so instead, many of these organisms obtain oxygen through their moist skin, while others obtain oxygen from gas exchange.
CIRCULATION: Platyhelminthes do not have circulatory system, so instead, they distribute nutrients, bodily fluids, and gases through diffusion. Diffusion is when particles move from a region of higher concentration to regions of lower concentration.
EXCRETION: These organism’s have a channel of tubules that open into nearby flame cells. The platyhelminthes’s cilia will then beat, to signal concentrated wastes to exit the body.
RESPONSE: Platyhelminthes have very simplistic nervous systems. There are two nerve cords which run down either side of their bodies, as well as two simple nerves known as ganglia, which are a bunch of nerves. The ganglia control the nerves in these organisms’ bodies. They also have eyespots which detect light.
REPRODUCTION: Platyhelminthes are hermaphrodites, meaning that these organisms have both male and female sex organs, and can reproduce asexually, but in most cases sexually. These organisms can fertilize their own eggs, grow an organism off of themselves, and can also reproduce sexually with another platyhelminthes. Free-living platyhelminthes carry their eggs and eventually lay them, why parasitic platyhelminthes deposit their eggs in their host.
The platyhelminthes phylum consists organisms commonly known as flatworms, has over 30,000 known species, all living in various different habitats. These organisms are bilaterally symmetrical and are flat organisms that can be either long or short, and come in different colors. These organisms can be either free-living, while most platyhelminthes are parasitic. These organisms are ecologically important since they keep the amount of algae, protozoans, and zooplankton in an healthy state. Some species such as the tapeworm can grow to be longer than the size of a school bus.
MOVEMENT: These organisms can move in two different ways. They will either thump their epidermal cilia, located on the outside of their bodies, to move along surfaces. Cilia helps these organisms glide in aquatic habitats. Also, when trying to move forwards, they use many muscles to twist and turn their bodies.
BODY COVERNINGS: Platyhelminthes have three layers: the ectoderm, the endoderm, and between these two layers is the mesoderm. The outer layer of these organisms’ bodies has cilia on it, which is used to protect themselves. These organisms have an organ system level of organization, meaning that groups of two or more tissue work together to make this organism function.
SUPPORT: Platyhelminthes are invertebrate, so the do not have a back bone to keep their shape. These organisms maintain their shape due to the lack of water filling their bodies, thus keeping them flat.
NUTRITION: Free-living platyhelminthes obtain their food by simply eating it through an opening known as the gastrovascular cavity. This serves as a mouth, letting the food travel through a channel of digestive tracts, which then disperse to the rest of the organism’s body. They eat other organism’s such as small worms, insects and microscopic matter. Parasitic platyhelminthes obtain their food from animals by attaching to their host’s digestive tract and feeding of the nutrients from their host. When these parasitic organisms obtain food from humans, they will attach to the intestine and absorb nutrients from the food that the human consumes.
RESPIRATION: Platyhelminthes do not have a formal respiratory system, so instead, many of these organisms obtain oxygen through their moist skin, while others obtain oxygen from gas exchange.
CIRCULATION: Platyhelminthes do not have circulatory system, so instead, they distribute nutrients, bodily fluids, and gases through diffusion. Diffusion is when particles move from a region of higher concentration to regions of lower concentration.
EXCRETION: These organism’s have a channel of tubules that open into nearby flame cells. The platyhelminthes’s cilia will then beat, to signal concentrated wastes to exit the body.
RESPONSE: Platyhelminthes have very simplistic nervous systems. There are two nerve cords which run down either side of their bodies, as well as two simple nerves known as ganglia, which are a bunch of nerves. The ganglia control the nerves in these organisms’ bodies. They also have eyespots which detect light.
REPRODUCTION: Platyhelminthes are hermaphrodites, meaning that these organisms have both male and female sex organs, and can reproduce asexually, but in most cases sexually. These organisms can fertilize their own eggs, grow an organism off of themselves, and can also reproduce sexually with another platyhelminthes. Free-living platyhelminthes carry their eggs and eventually lay them, why parasitic platyhelminthes deposit their eggs in their host.