In the phylum Porifera, there are sponges. Porifera means pore-bearer.

Sponges are the

only organism in the phylum Porifera. This is because there are no other organisms that share the
same traits that sponges do. Sponges are the simplest animal. They are classified as animals
because they are multicellular, heterotrophic, have no cell walls, and contain a few specialized
cells.
In their ecology, sponges are very important. They provide habitats for marine animals
and have mutualism with photosynthetic bacteria, algae, and plantlike protists. Sponges usually
live attached to the sea floor and only receive low levels of sunlight, so the spicules of some
sponges act like lenses or magnifying glasses to focus and direct rays of sunlight to the cells
lying below the surface of the sponge. Because of this adaptation, sponges can live in a large
range of habitats.
For the phylum Cnidaria, there are hydras, jellyfish, sea anemones, and corals. To be a
cnidarian, an organism must be soft-bodied, carnivorous, and have stinging tentacles arranged in
circles around their mouths. They are the simplest animals to have body symmetry and
specialized tissues. Cnidarians usually go through two different-looking stages: a polyp and a
medusa. A cnidarian typically paralyzes its prey and eliminates the wastes of cellular metabolism
by diffusion through their body walls. Both polyps and medusas have a nerve net, a loosely
organized network of nerve cells that sense stimuli in the cnidarians surroundings. The organisms
of this phylum have different methods of movement. For example, when the anemone's circular
muscles contract when the anemones mouth is closed then the pressure of the water makes the
body become taller. In comparison, medusas move by jet propulsion. Cnidarians can reproduce
asexually and sexually.
The ecology of corals, one of the subgroups in the phylum Cnidaria, is in a very delicate
situation currently. Many coral reefs are being destroyed by human activity. Chemicals and
sediments from human construction, farming, and many more activities can poison the corals.
Overfishing upsets the ecological balance of coral reefs. In addition, high temperatures can kill
the algae that live in the tissues of corals, leaving behind only transparent cells. This has become
very common and is causing many corals to die. Global warming could kill off the rest of the
coral reefs around the world. The worldwide distribution of corals is determined by a few
variables: temperature, water depth, and light intensity. Corals rely on mutualistic relationships
with algae that capture solar energy, recycle nutrients, and help corals lay down their calcium
carbonate skeletons.
The next phylum is Annelids. Subgroups of the phylum Annelids include oligochaetes,
leeches, and polychaetes. Annelids are worms with segmented bodies. Many annelids get their
food through their pharynx and typically have a closed circulatory system. Most annelids have a
well developed nervous system with a brain and several nerve cords. They have two major
groups of body muscles that function as part of a hydrostatic skeleton. Oligochaeta typically
have streamlined bodies and relatively few setae. Most of them live in soil or freshwater.

Leeches are typically external parasites that suck the blood and body fluids of their host. About a
fourth of all leeches are carnivores that feed on soft bodied invertebrates. Polychaetes are marine
annelids that have paired, paddlelike appendages tipped with setae.
Annelids are important in the ecosystem. They spend their lives burrowing in soil,
aerating it, and mixing it. Their tunnels allow plant roots, water, and allow the growth of
beneficial, oxygen requiring bacteria in the soil. Annelids also help decompose. Their castings
are also rich in nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, micronutrients, and beneficial bacteria.
Annelids are also part of an important diet of many animals: moles, skunks, toads, and snakes.
The phylum Molluska have gastropods, bivalves, and cephalopods. Mollusks are softbodied animals that usually have an internal or external shell. They include snails, slugs, clams,
squids, and octopi. The body plan of most mollusks have four parts. There is a foot, mantle,
shell, and visceral mass. The circulatory system of mollusks can be either open or closed.
Gastropods do not have shells or are single-shelled mollusks that move by using a muscular foot
located on the ventral side. They include pond snails, land slugs, sea butterflies, sea hares,
limpets, and nudibranchs. Bivalves have two shells that are held together by one or two powerful
muscles. Some common bivalves include clams, oysters, mussels, and scallops. Cephalapods
include octopi, squids, cuttlefish, and nautiluses, They are typically soft-bodied mollusks in
which the head is attached to a single foot. The foot is divided into tentacles or arms. Most
modern cephalopods have only a small internal shells or no shells at all.
Mollusks play different roles in the living systems. They feed on plants, prey on animals,
filter algae out the water, and eat detritus. They are also an important source of food for many
organisms. They are also hosts to symbiotic algae or parasites. Scientists have used mollusks as a
way to monitor water quality.
The phylum Arthropod include subgroups like crustaceans, spiders and their relatives;
and insects and their relatives. The arthropods have a segmented body, a tough exoskeleton, and
jointed appendages.The exoskeleton is made up of a protein called Chitin.Once the Arthropod
outgrows their exoskeleton they start molting. The molting is controlled by the endocrine
system.An arthropod regulates body process by hormones. The anthropod has specialized
appendages for feeding and other functions. The reason for that being because the evolution of
arthropods is by natural selection which causes the arthropod to have fewer body segments. Most
arthropods like spiders and insects have only have two or three body segments. The appendages
also evolve so that the arthropod can survive. Some examples are antennae, walking legs,
mouthparts , and more. Crustaceans have two pair of antennae,two or three body sections and
chewing mouthparts. Crustaceans include shrimp,crab,lobster,and more. Insects have a body
divided into three parts the head ,thorax, and abdomen. Insects include many species, but one of
them is a fly.

Chordata include mammals, fish, amphibians, reptiles, and birds. A chordata is an animal
that has a dorsal, hollow nerve cord; a notochord; pharyngeal pouches; and a tail that extends
beyond the anus. The two groups of nonvertebrate chordates are tunicates and lancelets. The first
subgroup of the chordate are fish. fish are aquatic vertebrates that are characterised by paired
fins, scales, and gills. Adaptations to aquatic life include various modes of feeding, specialised
structures for gas exchange, and paired fins for locomotion. fish can be classified into three
groups; they are jawless fish, cartilaginous fish, and bony fish. An amphibian is a vertebrate that
mostly lives in water as a larva and on land as an adult, breathes with lungs as an adult, has moist
skin that contains mucus glands, and lacks scales and claws. There are three groups of
amphibians: salamanders, frogs and toads, and caecilians. A reptile is a vertebrate that has dry,
scaly skin, lungs and terrestrial eggs with several membranes. The four groups of reptiles are
lizards, snakes, crocodilians, turtles and tortoises, and the tuatara, Birds are reptilelike and
maintain a constant internal body temperature. They have an outer covering of feathers, two
scale covered legs that are used for walking or perching; and front limbs modified into wings.
Birds have many adaptations that enable them to fly: highly efficient digestive, respiratory, and
circulatory systems; aerodynamic feathers and wings; and strong chest muscles. Mammals have
hair, the ability to nourish their young with milk, breathe air, have four chambered hearts, and are
endotherms that generate their body heat internally. Mammals have the ability to regulate their
body heat from within which is an example of homeostasis. Their form and function of their jaws
and teeth became adapted to eat other foods other than insect. Mammals have kidneys which
help maintain homeostasis by filtering urea from blood as well as by excreting excess water or
retaining needed water. In the category of mammals, there are monotremes and marsupials.
Monotremes lay eggs. Marsupials have children that finish developing in a pouch. In placental
mammals, through the placenta, nutrients, oxygen, carbon dioxide, and wastes are exchanged
between the embryo and the mother. Primates generally have binocular vision, a well-developed
cerebrum, fingers and toes, and arms that can rotate around their shoulder joints.
Most fish spend their their lives in the ocean and migrate to freshwater streams or rivers
to breed. This type of behavior is called anadromous. Other fish do it the other way like salmon.
They live in freshwater but migrate to the ocean to breed. This is catadromous.
Amphibians have many adaptations that protect them since they have no feathers, furs, or
scales. Some have skin colors that warn away predators while some adult amphibians have skin
glands that ooze an unpleasant-tasting or poisonous toxin. Other species are nontoxic and they
mimic or resemble the toxic amphibians. Lately, there has been a trend in worldwide amphibian
populations. They have been declining.