How Many Phylums in The Animal Kingdom

Introduction

Animals are eukaryotic, multicellular species that are members of the Animalia Kingdom. Each animal has distinct qualities that make it individual. They either eat plants or other animals to get their energy. There are millions of species that have been identified; some have characteristics in common, while others are very different.

Although it has been estimated that there are more than 7 million animal species overall which are classified under 11 phyla. It has been observed that over 1.5 million living animal species have been described, of which about 1 million are insects. Animals can be found in a variety of sizes, from 8.5 micrometres (0.00033 in) to 33.6 metres (110 ft). They form intricate food webs through their complex interactions with one another and their surroundings. Zoology is the study of animals from a scientific perspective.

Classification (Taxonomy)

The scientific study of naming, defining (circumscribing), and classifying groups of biological organisms based on shared characteristics is known as taxonomy (from the Ancient Greek (taxis) "arrangement" and (-nomia) "method"). A taxonomic hierarchy is created by classifying organisms into taxa (plural: taxon), and assigning each of these groups a taxonomic rank. Groups of a given rank can be combined to form a more inclusive group of a higher rank. The main ranks used today are domain, kingdom, phylum (division is occasionally used in place of phylum in botany), class, order, family, genus, and species. The current taxonomy system is credited to the Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus, who created a ranked system called Linnaean taxonomy for classifying organisms and binomial nomenclature for naming them.

Phylum

A phylum is a level of classification or taxonomic rank in biology that lies between a kingdom and a class. The International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants accepts the terms as equivalent, despite the fact that "division" has historically been used in place of "phylum" in the field of botany.

The word "phylum" was first used by Ernst Haeckel in 1866 and is derived from the Greek words phylon ("race, stock") and phyle ("tribe, clan"). According to Haeckel, species continually diverged to form new species that lacked distinctive characteristics and few traits that made them stand out from one another.

Classification of the Animal Kingdom

Animals are categorised according to their traits. Where there are no rigid cell walls, they are prominent in algae, plants, and fungi. They generally digest their food inside the internal chambers, which again sets them apart from algae and plants. Some are also heterotrophic. These species are mobile, with the exception of some life stages, which is another exceptional trait.

Animals are categorised according to a number of basic characteristics, including:

• body organisation levels (unicellular vs. multicellular)

• Symmetry

• Organisations that are Diploblastic and Triploblastic

• Construction of Coelom

• Body segmentation

• Notochord's presence or absence

Animalia

The following phyla are used to categorise the animal kingdom:

• Phylum – Porifera

• Phylum – Coelenterata (Cnidaria)

• Phylum – Ctenophora

• Phylum – Platyhelminthes

• Phylum – Aschelminthes (Nematode)

• Phylum- Annelida

• Phylum – Arthropoda

• Phylum – Mollusca

• Phylum – Echinodermata

• Phylum – Hemichordata

• Phylum – Chordata

1. Porifera: The lowest multicellular animals in the kingdom Animalia belong to the phylum Porifera. The term "Porifera" primarily refers to species that are pore-bearers. The "Porifera" phylum of animals generally refers to species that are pore bearers. About 5000 species are found in this phylum. Ostia is a term that refers to pores. The poriferans are referred to as sponges because of their sponge-like appearance. They are immobile due to their attachment to the substratum. They possess the capability of absorbing and retaining fluids. The fact that they were green and had a symbiotic relationship with algae led people to initially mistake them for plants. Once their life cycle and feeding habits were uncovered, they were classified as members of the animal kingdom.Common Example is Sponges

2. Coelenterata: The words "hollow" and "intestine" in Ancient Greek gave rise to the name, which referred to the hollow body cavity shared by these two phyla. They have radial symmetry and a very straightforward two-layer cell structure for their tissue organisation. Common examples are jellyfishes.

3. Ctenophores: Marine invertebrates belonging to the phylum Ctenophora, also referred to as comb jellies, are found in seawaters all over the world. They are the largest animals to swim with the aid of cilia and are notable for the groups of cilia they use.

4. Platyhelminthes: they are a phylum of relatively simple bilaterian, unsegmented, soft-bodied invertebrates. They are also known as flatworms, flatworms, or platyhelminthes.

5. Nematodes: The nematodes, also known as roundworms or eelworms, are members of the phylum Nematoda, which includes plant-parasitic nematodes. They belong to a diverse group of animal species and live in a variety of habitats.

6. Arthropoda: Invertebrate creatures classified as arthropods have a segmented body, an exoskeleton, and paired jointed appendages. Phylum Arthropoda comprises arthropods. They can be identified by their jointed limbs and chitin cuticles that are frequently mineralized with calcium carbonate.

7. Mollusca: Mollusca, whose members are referred to as molluscs or mollusks, is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda. There are currently about 85,000 known species of molluscs. Up to 100,000 additional species are thought to exist among the fossil species

8. Echinodermata: Any member of the phylum Echinodermata is referred to as an echinoderm. Starfish, brittle stars, sea urchins, sand dollars, sea cucumbers, and sea lilies, also known as "stone lilies," are examples of the adults that can be identified by their radial symmetry.

9. Hemichordata: This class of marine deuterostome animals, which includes triploblastic, entero-coelomate, and bilaterally symmetrical members, is frequently referred to as the sister class of echinoderms. There are two main classes of them: Pterobranchia and Enteropneusta, and they first appear in the Lower or Middle Cambrian.

10. Chordata: An animal belonging to the phylum Chordata is referred to as a chordate. All chordates have five synapomorphies, or primary physical traits, that set them apart from all other taxa at some point during their larval or adult stages. This includes creatures like fish, mammals, reptiles, and so forth.

Examples

For instance animals like Human, Lion, Sharks, Eagle etc, belongs to

Phylum; Chordata. Jellyfishes belong to the phylum Coelenterata, and organisms like octopuses, snails, and cuttlefishes belong to the phylum Mollusca.

Conclusion

Depending on the character of an organism, the animal kingdom, also called animalia, is divided into ten major phyla. Namely Porifera, Coelenterata (Cnidaria), Ctenophora,

Platyhelminthes, Aschelminthes (Nematodes), Annelida, Arthropoda, Mollusca, Echinodermata, Hemichordata, and Chordata