Question

refer to the table. a student examined three different organisms and took notes to identify the presence or absence of certain physical features. she constructed this table with xs to indicate the presence of various characteristics.

how would each animal be classified?

a is an ecdysozoan; b and c are lophotrochozoan.
a and c are ecdysozoan; b is a lophotrochozoan.
a and c are lophotrochozoans; b is an ecdysozoan.
a is a lophotrochozoan; b and c are ecdysozoans.

Explanation:

• Lophotrochozoans:
• Lophotrochozoans may have ciliated structures (like lophophores which are ciliated for feeding and gas exchange). Organism A has ciliated structure for feeding and gas exchange. Some lophotrochozoans can be marine.
• Ecdysozoans:
• Ecdysozoans are characterized by a hard - cuticle outer covering (which undergoes ecdysis, and organism A has this) or a segmented body (organism C has a segmented body). Ecdysozoans can be either marine (many arthropods have marine larvae or forms) or terrestrial (like insects). Organism B has no hard - cuticle outer covering or segmented body, but organism C has a segmented body (a feature that can be associated with some ecdysozoans like arthropods) and organism A has a hard - cuticle (a key ecdysozoan feature).

Answer:

A is an ecdysozoan; B and C are lophotrochozoan.