IBA Final Phylum and Classes

Porifera

Asymmetrical animals with choanocytes and spicules used for filter feeding

Choanocytes

Flagellated sponge cells that move water and capture food

Calcarea

Sponge class with calcium carbonate spicules

Demospongiae

Sponge class with silica spicules and spongin making up most sponges

Hexactinellida

Glass sponges with 6-rayed siliceous spicules

Cnidaria

Radially symmetric animals with cnidocytes and nematocysts

Cnidocytes

Stinging cells used for prey capture and defense

Nematocysts

Stinging organelles inside cnidocytes

Scyphozoa

True jellyfish with dominant medusa stage

Cubozoa

Box jellies with complex eyes and potent venom

Hydrozoa

Cnidarians with colonial forms and polyp dominance

Anthozoa

Corals and sea anemones with only polyp stage

Zooxanthellae

Symbiotic algae living inside corals

Ctenophora

Comb jellies with eight rows of ciliary comb plates

Comb rows

Ciliary structures used for locomotion in ctenophores

Platyhelminthes

Acoelomate flatworms with bilateral symmetry

Turbellaria

Free-living flatworms with ciliated epidermis

Trematoda

Parasitic flukes with complex life cycles

Cestoda

Tapeworms with no digestive tract

Scolex

Attachment structure of tapeworms

Proglottids

Reproductive segments of tapeworms

Nemertea

Ribbon worms with eversible proboscis

Proboscis

Extendable feeding structure in ribbon worms

Rotifera

Microscopic animals with ciliated corona and mastax

Corona

Ciliated feeding structure in rotifers

Mastax

Jaw structure of rotifers

Brachiopoda

Marine filter feeders with lophophore

Bryozoa

Colonial filter feeders with lophophore

Lophophore

Ciliated feeding structure used for filter feeding

Mollusca

Animals with mantle

Mantle

Tissue that secretes shell in mollusks

Radula

Rasping feeding structure in mollusks

Polyplacophora

Chitons with eight dorsal plates

Gastropoda

Snails and slugs that undergo torsion

Torsion

180° twisting of visceral mass in gastropods

Bivalvia

Clams and mussels with hinged shells and no radula

Cephalopoda

Squid and octopus with jet propulsion and closed circulation

Jet propulsion

Rapid movement by expelling water in cephalopods

Annelida

Segmented worms with true coelom and chaetae

Chaetae

Bristle-like structures for movement

Metamerism

Body segmentation

Polychaeta

Marine annelids with parapodia and many chaetae

Parapodia

Paired appendages for movement and respiration

Oligochaeta

Earthworms with few chaetae

Nematoda

Roundworms with pseudocoelom and cuticle

Cuticle

Protective collagen layer that requires molting

Ecdysis

Molting of the exoskeleton

Tardigrada

Water bears capable of cryptobiosis

Cryptobiosis

Dormant survival state in harsh conditions

Onychophora

Velvet worms with slime papillae and lobopod legs

Slime papillae

Prey-capturing slime-shooting structures

Arthropoda

Animals with jointed appendages and chitinous exoskeleton

Chitin

Structural carbohydrate in arthropod exoskeleton

Chelicerata

Arthropods with chelicerae and no antennae

Chelicerae

Fang-like mouthparts

Myriapoda

Arthropods with many similar segments and many legs

Crustacea

Arthropods with two pairs of antennae and biramous limbs

Hexapoda

Insects with six legs and usually wings

Tracheal system

Air-filled tubes for respiration in insects

Echinodermata

Marine animals with water vascular system and tube feet

Water vascular system

Hydraulic system for movement and feeding

Tube feet

Structures used for locomotion and feeding

Crinoidea

Sea lilies and feather stars

Ophiuroidea

Brittle stars with fast movement

Asteroidea

Sea stars and keystone predators

Echinoidea

Sea urchins and sand dollars with Aristotle’s lantern

Aristotle’s lantern

Five-toothed feeding structure of sea urchins

Holothuroidea

Sea cucumbers with reduced ossicles

Hemichordata

Deuterostomes with stomochord and pharyngeal slits

Stomochord

Support structure in acorn worms

Chordata

Animals with notochord and dorsal hollow nerve cord

Notochord

Flexible skeletal rod in chordates

Dorsal hollow nerve cord

Main nerve cord in chordates

Pharyngeal slits

Openings for filter feeding and respiration

Post-anal tail

Extension beyond anus in chordates

Fish

Aquatic vertebrates with gills and lateral line

Lateral line

Sensory system that detects water movement

Amphibians

Vertebrates with moist skin and metamorphosis

Metamorphosis

Developmental change from larva to adult

Reptiles

Ectothermic vertebrates with amniotic eggs and scales

Amniotic egg

Egg with protective membranes

Birds

Feathered reptiles adapted for flight

Feathers

Insulating and flight structures

Mammals

Endothermic vertebrates with hair and mammary glands

Mammary glands

Milk-producing glands

Endothermy

Internal temperature regulation