Question

1. a friend who is not in this class argues that colossal squid are vertebrates. craft a response to this friend based upon what you have observed in this dissection today.
2. what was your favorite part of the squid dissection? which organ was the hardest for your group to find?

Explanation:

Question 7

To respond, we recall that vertebrates have a backbone (vertebral column), while squids (including colossal squid) are mollusks. During dissection, we observe squids have a chitinous pen (not a backbone), a muscular mantle, and other invertebrate - like features. So we can say: "Hey, actually, colossal squid are invertebrates. Vertebrates have a backbone, but when we dissected the squid, we saw it has a chitinous pen (not a backbone) and other structures typical of invertebrates (like mollusks), so they don't have a vertebral column like vertebrates do."

For the favorite part, it could be observing the complex eye structure (since squid eyes are large and interesting) or the ink sac (as it's a unique feature). For the hardest organ to find, the beak or the statocyst (which helps with balance) might be tricky as they are small and well - hidden among other tissues. An example response: "My favorite part of the squid dissection was looking at the squid's eye because it's so large and complex, showing how well - adapted squids are to their environment. The hardest organ for our group to find was the statocyst, as it's a small structure deep within the squid's body, and it was challenging to locate among the other tissues."

Answer:

"Hey, actually, colossal squid are invertebrates. Vertebrates have a backbone, but when we dissected the squid, we saw it has a chitinous pen (not a backbone) and other structures typical of invertebrates (like mollusks), so they don't have a vertebral column like vertebrates do."

Question 8