4. PhylumChaetognatha meaningBristle-jaws.
- commonly know
n as “a
rro
w w
o
rm
s”.
Are coelomateanimalsofrelativelysmallsize,with
straight,slender,transparentbodydisplaying
perfectbilateral symmetry
.
*theyareusuallycolorless,slightlyopaque.
General
Description
6. * THE BODY IS DIVIDED IN THREE PARTS BY
INTERNAL PARTITIONING: HEAD, TRUNKAND TAIL.
- Finsonboththetailandthebody
.
- The head has eyes with photoreceptive cells,
Eachsideoftheheadbearsagroupofcurved
graspinghooksandoneortworowsofteeth.
8. Chaetognathsarecarnivorouspredators.
These voracious meat-eaters catch large
numbers of copepods, larval fish,
crustaceans,swallowingthemwhole
.
- The largespines aroundtheir mouthhelps
them grab and restrain their prey and
immobilizethemwithneurotoxins.
Mode Of
Nutrition
10. The sperm mature before the ova
(eggs) which ma
y help avoid self
fertilizationtosameextent.
Fertilizationisinternalanddependingon
the species fertilized eggs ma
y be
brooded, deposited on the seafloor
, or
releasedintotheocean.
11. Their torpedo-like body shape
allowsthemtomov
equicklythroughthe
water
.
-Chaetognatha alternatebetw
een
swim
ming andfloating.
- Thefinsalongtheirbodyarenotusedto
swim,butrathertohelpthemfloat.
- Theyusuallyswimtothesurfaceatnight
anddescendduringdaytime.
Locomotion
12. They arefoundin all marinewaters, from
surface tropical waters and shallow tide
pools to the deep sea and polar regions,
most species are planktonic, but a small
numberofspeciesareBenthic.
*about 20%, live just above the ocean
floorandcanattachtoseaweedorrocks.
Habitat
13. Chaetognatha are traditionally
classed by an (embryologist) as
De
ute
rostom
e
s and by
(phylogenists) asProtostom
e
s.
Classification
Animalia
Chaetognath
aSagittoidea
Kingdom:
Phylum
:
Class:
Order:
Aphragmophor
aPhragmophora
14. The embryologist Lynn Margulis and
K.V Schwartz placed chaetognaths in
deuterostomes in their five kingdom
classification.
Deuterostomes - The name
deuterostomes means "second mouth."
The name is derived from the embryo
developingtheanusfirst,followedbythe
mouth.
15. The phylogenists Thomas Cavalier-
Smith placed them in the
protostomes in his six kingdom
classification.
Protostomes – means “first
mouth” embryos develop the mouth
firstandthentheanus,