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Nemertea
*** Shopping-Tip: Nemertea
{{Taxobox
| color = pink
| name = Ribbon worms
| regnum =
Animalia
| subregnum =
Metazoa
| superphylum =
Lophotrochozoa
| phylum = '''Nemertea'''
| phylum_authority =
Max Johann Sigismund Schultze Schultze, 1851
| subdivision_ranks = Orders
| subdivision =
Anopla
Enopla
}}
The
phylum (biology) phylum '''Nemertea''' (also '''Nemertina''', '''Nemertinea''' or '''Nemertini''') contains the '''ribbon worms''' or '''proboscis worms''', which are a group of
segmentation (biology) unsegmented ocean marine invertebrates. There are about 1200
species distributed among two
Order (biology) orders:
Anopla and
Enopla. The Nemerteans are named for Nemertes, one of the
Nereids, sea-nymphs of Greek mythology.
Nemertean worms are distinguished by their possession of an eversible
proboscis, which in one major group of species is armed with a
poisonous
stylet. The proboscis is used in the capture of
prey. Ribbon worms are
carnivorous, feeding mostly on small
invertebrates, but these can be several times the normal thickness of the worm and are often swallowed whole (much as snakes do). Those without a stylet wrap the proboscis around prey; those with a stylet use it to make a puncture wound through which neurotoxin is delivered. Most Nemertea live in shallow seas and coastal waters, with a few inhabiting
freshwater or damp soil. They range in length from 1
millimetre mm to as much as 30
metres (100
feet) in the case of the bootlace worm, ''
Lineus longissimus''. Some texts quote lengths of up to 60 m, in which case, ''L. longissimus'' would be the longest animal alive (female
blue whales reach about 34 m).
The proboscis lies in a fluid-filled
body cavity coelom, which is the reason for one zoologist naming the phylum '''Rhynchocoela''' (but most specialists use the older name, '''Nemertea''').They also possess a closed
circulatory system, which may use
hemoglobin, and a one-way
intestine. Members of the phylum Nemertea have often been considered as modified
flatworms, but their placement has been extensively revised in recent years, and they are now placed in the
Lophotrochozoa, along with so-called more advanced animals, such as
molluscs and
annelids.
Category:Animals
Category:Nemertea
de:Schnurwürmer
es:Nemertina
fr:Nemertea
it:Nemertea
nl:Nemertea
ja:ヒモムシ
pl:Wstężnice
sl:Nitkarji
zh:纽形动物门
sr:немертине
sr:Nemertina
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Category:Animals
*** Shopping-Tip: Nemertea
