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Corals belong to a group or phylum that includes hydras, jellyfish, and sea anemones called coelenerates. They are frequently symbiotic. This means that it and another living thing live off of each other without one harming the other. Coelenterates live in the sea. They give off poisonous toxins to protect themselves from predators.
System
Type
|
Coelenterate
System
|
Muscular-Skeletal | A coelenterate has an outer skeleton, if it has one. It moves by waving its body and tentacles. The body basically consists of two layers with a jellylike middle. |
Digestion | A coelenterate has a mouth opening surrounded by tentacles. It eats animals and plants. It leads to a stomach cavity or area where food is digested. |
Nervous | A coelenterate has no brain but has a simple nervous system called a nerve net. Some have a very primitive sense of taste/smell. |
Circulation | A coelenterate has a gastrovascular system. This means that the digestive and circulatory system are meshed in the coelenterates body. |
Respiration | A coelenterate breathes through its body surface. |
Reproduction | A coelenterate reproduces by budding or sexually. In budding, the coelenterate grows a tiny body part that sprouts and then breaks off. It can also be male or female or a hermaphrodite, meaning it has the sex organs of male and female. |
Excretion | A coelenterate passes wastes out through its mouth. |
Symmetry | A coelenterate has radial symmetry. |
Appearance | A coelenterate can be reddish, white, green. |