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PHYLUM ANNELIDA
Alex Shayo, D (PhD)
animals.
Phylum annelida consists of the segmented worms
such as earthworms, Nereis and leeches.
Annelids have a hydrostatic skeleton.
Locomotion in most annelids is aided by numerous
fine chitinous hairs, called setae or chaetae. The
annelid gut is a straight tube supplied with its own
musculature.
The nervous system is concentrated anteriorly
(cephalization) into cerebral ganglia from which
arises a ventral nerve cord with segmental ganglia.
Characteristics of Annelids
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Significance of Metamerism
Metamerism increases the efficiency of
body movement by allowing the effect of
muscle contraction to be extremely
localized. Resultant localized changes in
the shape of groups of segments provide
the basis for swimming, crawling, and
burrowing.
2. The repetition of body parts provides
safety to the organisms because if one
segment fails, it may not necessarily lead
to fatal consequences as there are still
other segments which can complement
the functions of the failed segment.
1.
Significance of Metamerism
3.Metamerism permits modification of certain
regions of the body for specialized functions such
as feeding, locomotion, and reproduction.
The specialization of body regions in a
metameric animal is called tagmatization.
Tagmatization is best developed in arthropods;
annelids only show some advent of this regional
specialization of body segments.
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Ecdysozoa
Lophotrochozoa
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Ecdysozoa
This is the clade of the moulting protostomes.
This clade includes the Phylum Nematoda, Nematomorpha,
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Lophotrochozoa
This is the clade of the non-moulting protostomes.
This clade includes the Annelida, Mollusca, Rotifera, and
Acanthocephala.
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1. CLASS POLYCHAETA
("many bristles)
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The parapodia and setae aid in locomotion, digging through the substrate,
During movement, the longitudinal muscles on one side of the body acts
The parapodia and setae act against the substrate or water to propel the
animal.
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3.
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flow
Food is filtered out from the front of the burrow
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2. CLASS CLITELLATA
Members of this class include the earthworms and
leeches.
They are characterized by the presence of a
clitellum for cocoon formation, monoecious/
hermaphrodism, direct development, and a few or
no setae on the integument.
This class consists of two major subclasses
namely;
Subclass Oligochaeta
Subclass Hirudinea
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A. Subclass Oligochaeta
("few bristles")
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Respiratory system
Earthworms have no respiratory organs.
Gaseous exchange occurs by diffusion across the skin.
The skin is always moist to allow efficient exchange of
respiratory gases.
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Excretion
Oligochaetes excrete nitrogenous wastes in form of ammonia and
urea.
They have metanephridia for excretion and for ion and water balance.
Oligochaetes excrete copious amounts of very dilute urine, although
they retain vital ions which are important for organisms living in an
environment where water is plentiful but essential ions are limited.
Just as with polychaetes, the metanephridia of oligochaetes are
associated with the segment just anterior to the segment containing
the tubule and the nephridiopore.
Oligochaetes (as well as other annelids) possess Chloragogen tissue.
The chloragogen tissue is a site for metabolism of amino acids and
carbohydrates
The chloragogen tissue, deaminates amino acids, converts ammonia
to urea, and converts excess carbohydrates into glycogen and fat.
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Note:
Oligochaetes differ from polychaetes in
several ways:
No parapods, fewer setae (if at all)
No larval stages
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B. Subclass Hirudinea
This subclass consists of the leeches.
Leeches are primarily freshwater annelids, but some live in
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Structure of Leeches
Unlike other annelids, Leeches lack parapodia, setae and
head appendages.
They are dorsalventrally flattened and taper anteriorly.
A less conspicuous clitellum is present.
Leeches are equipped with anterior and posterior suckers
used for creeping and feeding.
Leeches are the only annelids with a fixed number (34) of
body segments.
However, these segments are difficult to distinguish
externally because have become divided into secondary
subdivisions known as annuli.
The coelom is not subdivided by septa.
The muscles are complex than that of other annelids.
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Locomotion in Leeches
Because of the modifications in the coelom and
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victims.
Many leeches have a proboscis used for swallowing the prey or for
sucking its fluids; others have jaws for biting.
Many parasitic leeches are able to parasitize a wide variety of hosts.
The distinction between predatory and parasitic leeches is not sharp as
many predatory leeches take blood meals on occasion.
Most parasitic leeches attach to the host only while feeding; a single
meal may be 5 or 10 times the weight of the leech and provide it with
food for several months.
The digestive tract of bloodsuckers produces an anticoagulant, hirudin,
which keeps the engorged blood from clotting.
A few leeches attach permanently to the host, leaving only to reproduce.
Predatory leeches are active at night and hide by day.
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Reproduction
Like the oligochaetes, leeches are hermaphroditic and
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Excretion
Leeches excrete nitrogenous wastes by using 10-17
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Summary
Oligochaetes have a sticky pad in the roof of the mouth. Most are
burrowers that feed on wholly or partly decomposed organic materials.
b) Hirudinea whose name means "leech-shaped" and whose best known
members are leeches. Marine species are mostly blood-sucking parasites,
mainly on fish, while most freshwater species are predators. They have
suckers at both ends of their bodies, and use these to move rather like
inchworms.
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Economic Importance of
Annelids
1. Earthworms cycle huge quantities of soil through
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