Reporters:

Maun, Maja Mariella

Gonzales, Alessy Joy
Cortez, Kate
Phylum Protochordata
• The organisms belonging to the Protochordata
are generally known as the lower chordates.
They don’t form a “proper” taxonomic group
and are only classified as such for convenience
purposes. However, they do form a major
division of Chordata. They are also known as
Acraniata because they lack a true skull. They
are divided into three sub-phyla- Hemichordata,
Urochordata, Cephalochordata
Characteristics of Protochordata
 They are generally found in marine water.
 Their body is bilaterally symmetrical, triploblastic,
and coelomated.
 At a certain stage of their lives, their body develops a
long, rod-like structure for support called the
notochord.
 They exhibit organ system level of organization.
E.g., Herdmania, Amphioxus.
What are the sub-phyla of Protochordata?

Protochordata is divided into the following three sub-

phyla:
Hemichordata
Urochordata
Cephalochordata
Classifications of Protochordata
1.Hemichordata
 They are found in marine water.
 Some live solitarily, and some stay in colonies.
 The body is cylindrical, unsegmented, and stout.
 The body is divided into proboscis, collar, and trunk.
 The collar bears arms and tentacles.
 They have a complete digestive system.
 They respire through gills or general body
surface.
 The circulatory system comprises a heart with
two longitudinal vessels.
 The blood has no colour and corpuscles.
 The proboscis gland or glomerulus make up the
excretory system.
 Sexes may be separate or united and fertilization
is either internal or external.
E.g., Cephalodiscus, Rhabdopeura.
2. Urochordata or Tunicata
 They are found in the marine environment.
 They are sessile and filter-feeders.
 They are also known as tunicates because their body is
surrounded by a leathery sheath composed of tunicin
(cellulose).
 The notochord appears in the larval stage in the tail of
the larva and disappears in the adult. This is known as
retrogressive metamorphosis.
 The neural tube in the larva is replaced by a
dorsal ganglion in the adults.
 Respiration occurs through gills.
 They have an open circulatory system.
 The excretory organs are absent.
 They reproduce asexually by budding.
E.g., Herdmania, Selpa
3. Cephalochordata
 They are marine and filter-feeders.
 The notochords remain throughout life and extend up to
the head region.
 The nerve cord and the tail also remain throughout life.
 Solenocyts are the excretory organs.
 They respire through gills which open in the atrium.
 The body wall comprises myotomes.
E.g., Amphioxus
What are Protochordates?
Protochordate is an informal category of
organisms to describe the invertebrates
that are closely related to vertebrates.

Protochordates lack a true notochord.

 
Phylum Vertebrata
They are the animals with
backbone inside their bodies.
Fish, dogs, humans are example
of vertebrates.
 Vertebrate, also called Craniata, any animal of the subphylum
Vertebrata, the predominant subphylum of the phylum Chordata.
They have backbones, from which they derive their name.
 The vertebrates are also characterized by a muscular system
consisting primarily of bilaterally paired masses and a central
nervous system partly enclosed within the backbone.
 These animals have a true vertebral column and internal skeleton,
allowing a completely different distribution of muscle attachment
points to be used for movement.
 The members of subphylum Vertebrata possess notochord during the
embryonic period.
 The notochord is replaced by a cartilaginous or bony vertebral
column in the adult.
 Thus all vertebrates are chordates but all chordates are not
vertebrates.
 Besides the basic chordate characters, vertebrates have a ventral
muscular heart with two, three or four chambers, kidneys for
excretion and osmoregulation and paired appendages which may be
fins or limbs.
 Vertibrates are bilaterally symmetrical, triploblastic, coelomic and
segmented, with complex differentiation of body tissues and organs.
The subphylum is one of the best known
of all groups of animals. Its members
include the classes Agnatha,
Chondrichthyes, and Osteichthyes (all
fishes); Amphibia (amphibians); Reptilia
(reptiles); Aves (birds); and Mammalia
(mammals).
There are 5 Groups of Vertebrates animals
 Fish
 The body of the fish is covered in scales and has fins
attached to help it move through the water. Fish
breathe using gills which take oxygen out of the
water. When male and female fish mate, the eggs
often meet the sperm in the water. This is called
external fertilization. Examples of fish are the
herring, which lives in the sea, and the pike which is
a freshwater fish.
 Amphibians
• The skin of amphibians is very thin and must always be
kept wet because amphibians breathe through their skin.
The do have lungs, but their lungs are small and are not
used very much. Fertilization of the eggs is external,
taking place in the water. The eggs are covered with jelly
to protect them. The larvae, called tadpoles, are aquatic.
They slowly change (metamorphose) into the adult
amphibian which lives on land but always near water.
Examples of amphibians are the frog and the newt.
 Reptiles
• The body of a reptile is covered in hard scales. Reptiles
live on land, although many of them swim well and
may feed in water, such as some snakes and lizards.
They breathe using lungs. When male and female mate
fertilization is internal. The female lays soft-shelled
eggs which are often buried in sand or in the earth to
protect them while the young develop inside. Examples
of reptiles are crocodiles, snakes and lizards.
 Birds
 Birds have bodies covered with feathers. They do not
have teeth but use their beaks to eat their food. Their
front limbs are adapted as wings, although not all birds
fly. Birds breathe using lungs. Fertilization is internal
and the females lay eggs with hard shells, usually in a
nest. Most birds incubate their eggs until the eggs
hatch. Examples of birds are the stork, the eagle and the
penguin
 Mammals
 All mammals have a body covering of either hair or fur. They
breathe using lungs. Fertilization is internal and the females feed
their young with milk from their mammary glands. Most
mammals are viviparous. This means that the offspring are kept
inside the female's body and feed through a placenta. The largest
mammal lives in the sea. It is the blue whale, which can reach
33,6 metres in length and has a mass of 190 tonnes. The smallest
mammal is called the bumble bee bat. This tiny bat lives in
Thailand. It has a mass of just under 2 grammes and a wingspan
of 16 cm.
The Vertebrates are subdivided here into
major groups based on morphology: the
cyclostomes (jawless fishes), the
chondrichthyes (cartilaginous fishes),
the teleostomes (bony fishes), and the
tetrapods. humans for food and
recreation.
1. The Cyclostomes

Lamprey
•The cyclostomes include two classes of living, jawless fishes
(agnathous)—Petromyzontiformes (lamprey eels) and
Myxiniformes (hagfishes).
•The hagfishes are totally marine, often living in deep waters
associated with muddy bottoms.
•The lampreys may be marine as adults but spawn in fresh waters,
where the larvae spend some time before metamorphosing to the
adult.
•Some lampreys live entirely in fresh water and may change only
slightly in habit as a result of metamorphosis.
•Without lateral fins, lampreys swim by undulations of the body
and can control direction only for short distances.
2. The Chondrichthyes

Southern Stingrays Bull Shark

  
 The sharks, rays, and chimaerids are usually marine, but some
sharks have entered fresh waters (the Amazon) or even live there
permanently (Lake Nicaragua).
 In size, sharks range from the whale shark, nearly 10 metres in
length, to rather small species, three centimetres in length. They
usually weigh 25 to 200 kilograms (55 to 440 pounds).
 Sharks are predatory animals.
 Some large shark species (basking and whale sharks) filter feed
on small crustaceans. Herbivorous sharks are unknown.
 Sharks swim by undulations of the tail, but rays “fly” through the
water by undulations of the pectoral fins.
3. The Teleostomes

American Paddlefish Ocean Sunfish/Common Mola

 Actinopterygian fishes are the common bony fishes of modern aquatic
environments.
 They range in size from fishes that are only millimetres in size to those
two or more metres (6.6 or more feet) in length, weighing 500 kilograms
or more.
 Large species (sturgeons) are found in fresh waters (several other large
species are found in the Amazon) as well as in marine environments.
 The diet may include plants, animals, and carrion. Most species are
midwater swimmers, but many spend much time lying on the bottom.
 Tail, pectoral, and even dorsal fins are used in swimming.
 Reproduction in this group is by way of large numbers of small eggs,
which produce small larvae or develop directly to the adult.
4. The Tetrapods

Pond Turtle Sandhill Cranes