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Platyhelminthes

 Commonly callaed flatworms


 Phylum of invertebrate animals
 Bilateral symmetry
 No skeleton
 Small bristles called cilia which help it move
 Two layers of muscle under skin
 Endoderm, mesoderm, ectoderm
 Most eat and gets rid of wastes through the same opening, however some longer species may
have a separate anus or even several of them
 Very primitive nervous system: two nerve cords on either side, two brains called ganglia
 Senses light through two eyespots
 Eats small worms, insects, and microscopic matter
 Takes in oxygen by diffusion-for this reason it is restricted to flat shapes that allow oxygen to
pass through (where the "flat" in "flatworm" comes from)
 No body cavity, specialized circulatory organs
 Asexual reproduction- splits in two
 Generally thin, but can have lengths of microscopic size to several feet
 Like moist environment because respiration through the whole body makes them vulnerable to
dehydration
 Main classes are Monogenea, Trematoda(flukes), Cestoda(tapeworms), and Turbellaria. The first
three are parasitic while the fourth is usually not

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platyhelminthes

http://www.mcwdn.org/Animals/Flatworm.html

http://www.wetwebmedia.com/flatworms.htm
<-- fake (bead sculpture)

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