5 Unique Facts about Invertebrates, Animals Without a Spine

Have a unique growth period

INDONEWTRAVEL.COM - Invertebrates are animals that do not have a backbone. The anatomy of invertebrate animals is generally not as complex as that of animals that have a backbone and are considered more primitive.

According to ThoughtCo, invertebrates are divided into 6 main groups, namely arthropods (insects, spiders, and shrimp), cnidarians (jellyfish, corals, and anemones), echinoderms (sea stars, sea cucumbers, and sea urchins), mollusks ( snails, squid, and octopuses), annelids (earthworms and leeches), and sponges.

Launching the ThoughtCo page, here are some interesting facts about invertebrates.

1. The first invertebrates evolved a billion years ago

Scientists believe that the first multicellular invertebrates appeared on Earth as far back as one billion years ago. However, the evidence for this claim is still puzzling scientists.

This is because the earliest forms of invertebrates in ancient times consisted only of soft tissue. 600 million years ago evolution still had not incorporated marine minerals into the exoskeleton or exoskeleton.

Because early forms of invertebrates lacked exoskeletons and soft tissues that cannot be preserved in the fossil record, scientists cannot have physical evidence of an invertebrate ancestor that dates back hundreds of millions of years.

2. Invertebrates dominate 97 percent of all animal species

Invertebrates are the most numerous and diverse animals on earth. To illustrate, there are about 5,000 species of mammals and 10,000 species of birds; For invertebrates, insects alone account for at least one million species.

Some other surprising figures are that there are around 100,000 species of mollusks, 75,000 species of arachnids, and 10,000 species of sponges and cnidarians. Not surprisingly, invertebrates dominate 97 percent of all animal species.

3. Most invertebrates undergo metamorphosis

For the case of mammals, most of the children they give birth will have the same shape as adult mammals. This process is followed by a period of more or less steady growth.

This is very different from the period of invertebrate growth which is divided by the process of metamorphosis. an invertebrate that has undergone metamorphosis will look very different from the phase before it changed. A classic example of this event is a caterpillar turning into a butterfly.

4. Invertebrates have a very varied diet

Invertebrates have a very wide way and range of food. Examples include spiders that eat other insects, sponges filter small organisms from the water, and leaf cutter ants insert certain vegetation into their nests to cultivate fungi.

Another, more extreme example, invertebrates also play an important role in breaking down the carcasses of dead vertebrate animals. That is why often the corpses of birds or small mammals are swarmed by thousands of ants and other insects.

5. Some invertebrate species form large colonies

Colonies are groups of animals of the same species and will survive throughout their life cycle. In the colony, each member of the group will be assigned with their respective jobs.

In marine habitats, individual invertebrates will usually combine and create a shape that looks like a larger organism. Examples of invertebrate colonies in the sea are coral, hydrozoa, and sea spray.

On land, members of invertebrate colonies are autonomous and have complex social systems. Examples are ants, bees, termites, and wasps.

Invertebrate animals do have an interesting and amazing way of life. The facts mentioned above are only a small part of the amazing things this animal species can do. Comment below if you have any other interesting invertebrate facts.