Vertebrates Lecture Flashcards

Flashcards on Vertebrates Lecture

Class Actinopterygii

Ray-finned fish. They have radiating fins that are covered with thin skin, used for balancing and steering underwater and have a swim bladder.

Class Sarcopterygii

Lobe-finned fish. Two groups: coelacanths and lungfish and have fins that are more like bones of animals that walk on land.

Operculum

A covering over the gills of ray-finned fish that is used to draw water into the gills.

Swim Bladder

A gas-filled sac in ray-finned fish used for buoyancy and to regulate their position in the water column.

Countercurrent Flow of Blood and Water

A method used by fish to maximize oxygen diffusion into capillaries by having blood and water flow in opposite directions.

Tetrapods

Four-limbed animals.

Amniotic Eggs

Eggs that have a layer that contains the embryo, called an amniotic.

Amphibian

Vertebrate animals that typically live in water as larvae and on land as adults. They are cold-blooded and have both lungs and gills.

Ectothermic

Cold-blooded animals. Their body temperature is the same as the environment.

Amnion

A membrane that surrounds and protects the embryo in amniotic eggs, containing amniotic fluid.

Order Urodela (Caudata)

An order of amphibians that includes newts and salamanders.

Order Anura

An order of amphibians that includes frogs and toads.

Order Apoda

An order of amphibians that includes caecilians.

Newt

Type of salamander. Their arm tends to be not at a right angle.

Salamander

Type of amphibians. Its arm is at a step at a kinda like a right angle.

Caecilian

A limbless amphibian that resembles a snake or earthworm.

Amniotes

Animals that produce amniotic eggs, including reptiles, birds, and mammals.

Allantois

Structure in amniotic eggs involved in respiration and waste excretion.

Chorion

Structure in amniotic eggs that eventually gives rise to the placenta.

Class Reptilia

Class of vertebrates that includes lizards, snakes, turtles, crocodiles, and alligators. They have waterproof skin, lay shelled eggs, and are ectothermic.

Three-Chamber Heart

Heart structure found in amphibians and reptiles, consisting of two atria and one ventricle.

Loop of Henle

Structure in the kidney that allows for the reabsorption of water, absent in reptiles.

Order Crocodilia

An order of reptiles that includes crocodiles, alligators, and caimans.

Order Sphenodontia

An order of reptiles that includes the tuatara.

Order Squamata

An order of reptiles that includes lizards, snakes, and skinks.

Order Testudines

An order of reptiles that includes turtles, tortoises, and terrapins.

Scutes

The scales on the skin of crocodilians.

Nictitating Membrane

A third eyelid found in crocodilians that is clear and acts like underwater goggles.

Tapetum

A layer of tissue in the back of the eye that reflects light, enhancing night vision, found in animals like cats.

Tuatara

Ancient reptiles found in New Zealand that possess a third eye and lack visible ears.

Quadrate Bones

Bones that connect the lower and upper jaw in snakes and lizards, allowing them to dislocate their jaws.

Anal Spurs

Remnants of legs found in primitive snakes like pythons.

Skink

A type of squamata that has characteristics of lizard and snakes. Having tiny little arms and even lower legs.

Brille

A transparent eyelid that protects the eyes of burrowing snakes.

Jacobson's Organ

Sensory organ in snakes used for smelling by processing chemicals collected by their tongue.

Pit Organ

Sensory organ in snakes used for detecting heat.

Tortoise

Chilonians that lives on land.

Terrapin

Chilonians that lives in brackish water.

Turtle

Chilonians that lives in the ocean.

Carapace

The top shell of a chelonian.

Plastron

The abdomen shell, the bottom part of a chelonian.

Cloaca

An opening near the butt of chelonians and birds used for removing waste and egg laying.