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Platyhelminthes (from the Greek πλατύ, platy, meaning "flat" and ἕλμινς (root: ἑλμινθ-), helminth-, meaning "worm") [4] is a phylum of relatively simple bilaterian, unsegmented, soft-bodied invertebrates commonly called flatworms or flat worms.
The Turbellaria are one of the traditional sub-divisions of the phylum Platyhelminthes (flatworms), and include all the sub-groups that are not exclusively parasitic.There are about 4,500 species, which range from 1 mm (0.039 in) to large freshwater forms more than 500 mm (20 in) long [3] or terrestrial species like Bipalium kewense which can reach 600 mm (24 in) in length.
The gastrovascular cavity is the primary organ of digestion and circulation in two major animal phyla: the Coelenterates or cnidarians (including jellyfish and corals) and Platyhelminthes (flatworms). The cavity may be extensively branched into a system of canals.
The acoelomorph taxa had previously been considered flatworms with secondarily lost characteristics, but the new relationship suggested that the simple acoelomate worm form was the original bilaterian body plan and that the coelom, the digestive tract, excretory organs, and nerve cords developed in the Nephrozoa.
Pseudobiceros bedfordi (common names Persian carpet flatworm [1] and Bedford's flatworm) is a species of flatworm in the family Pseudocerotidae. [2]This species has two penises, which it uses to engage in penis fencing, attempting to inject sperm into its opponent in order to fertilize it, while simultaneously avoiding being fertilized by their opponent.
Pseudoceros are simultaneous hermaphrodites [9] and reproduce sexually via random hypodermic insemination through the body tissue. [10] These organisms participate in penis fencing, [9] which is a behavior where the flatworms use their extended penises to stab and inseminate the other, while avoiding becoming inseminated themselves.
Cestoda is a class of parasitic worms in the flatworm phylum (Platyhelminthes). Most of the species—and the best-known—are those in the subclass Eucestoda; they are ribbon-like worms as adults, commonly known as tapeworms.
Digenea (Gr. Dis – double, Genos – race) is a class of trematodes in the Platyhelminthes phylum, consisting of parasitic flatworms (known as flukes) with a syncytial tegument and, usually, two suckers, one ventral and one oral.