What animals are chitons?

chiton, any of numerous flattened, bilaterally symmetrical marine mollusks, worldwide in distribution but most abundant in warm regions. The approximately 600 species are usually placed in the class Placophora, Polyplacophora, or Loricata (phylum Mollusca). Chitons are usually oval in shape.

1. How many species of Polyplacophora are there?
2. Are chitons arthropods?
3. Where do we usually find chitons?
4. Are chitons hermaphrodites?
5. Are chitons prehistoric?
6. Do chitons bite?
7. Are chitons nocturnal?
8. What are 3 characteristics of Polyplacophora?
9. How do chitons breathe?
10. Are chitons Cephalized?
11. Are lobsters related to spiders?
12. How are chitons different from other mollusks?

How many species of Polyplacophora are there?

Polyplacophorans include about 600 extant species. Entirely marine, they inhabit hard bottoms and rocky coasts in all of the world's oceans. Although commonly intertidal, living chitons have been dredged from waters as deep as 7000 m.

Are chitons arthropods?

Crabs, lobsters, shrimp, barnacles and many other animals belong to the phylum arthropods. In fact, 75% of all animals belong to the phylum arthropoda (which also includes spiders and insects). All arthropods have a hard exoskeleton made of chiton, a type of protein.

Where do we usually find chitons?

Chitons, especially in warm areas, are usually found in the intertidal zone or in shallow water. In colder regions more species inhabit deeper water to about 4,000 metres (13,000 feet), although some have been found to depths of 7,000 metres. Most are nocturnal in habit.

Are chitons hermaphrodites?

Most chitons are gonochorists, with the exceptions of the two hermaphroditic species Lepidochitona fernaldi and Lepidochitona caverna (Eernisse 1988). Sexual dimorphism in the colour of the plates has been described in a variety of species. ... Chitons have external fertilization.

Are chitons prehistoric?

Chitons are ancient creatures, first appearing about 500 million years ago.

Do chitons bite?

The diet of many chitons consists of “diatom scuzz” scraped off rocks, but the largest chitons tend to take bites of large algal blades.

Are chitons nocturnal?

Most chitons are nocturnal, so they feed at night, and hide under rocks during the day. Their main habitat is the intertidal zone. They live on hard surfaces, such as on or under rocks, or in rock crevices. Some species live quite high in the intertidal zone and are exposed to the air and light for long periods.

What are 3 characteristics of Polyplacophora?

The main characteristics of Polyplacophora include (1) elongate or oval, dorsoventrally flattened, bilaterally symmetrical, marine; (2) with dorsal shell of eight plates embedded in a tough mantle; (3) mantle-edge stiffened (called the girdle); (4) large, muscular, ventral foot (girdle and foot can act as suction cup); ...

How do chitons breathe?

Because the chiton mantle is stiff and surrounds the body, it is referred to as a girdle. ... Inside the groove are gills that help the chiton to breathe underwater. Oxygen-carrying water enters the grooves near the head, flows through the gills, and exits at the rear of the body.

Are chitons Cephalized?

The ancestral mollusc probably resembled a chiton, a flattened worm like animal protected by a dorsal shell. ... Both flatworms and molluscs are triploblastic, bilaterally symmetric, and cephalized.

Are lobsters related to spiders?

Conclusion. To conclude, lobsters and spiders are distantly related. They both belong to the group of animals called arthropods, which is a large group of animals that contains spiders, lobsters, insects, and other animals with an exoskeleton.

How are chitons different from other mollusks?

Also, unlike limpets and other snails, the chitons have no tentacles or eyes in the head region, just a mouth and a radula. The shell is so different from those of other mollusks that one might think chitons are segmented (or metameric), but contrary to the general rule, this is incorrect.