Mollusk Analysis

   The adaption and variation in mollusks all have different and looks and feels but they all have things in common. The morphological feature of the mollusks which means soft body is the feature that they heave more than two cell layers, tissues and organs. Because of the mollusks soft body they have to be very careful because they are so fragile and can get hurt or even killed very easily. They do not have the protection like crabs and animals with shells do, they have to learn to survive on there own without a lot of protection. The mollusks are split into classes called class Gastropoda, Class Bivalvia, and class Cephalopoda. Class Gastropoda includes the species snails and slugs, class Bivalvia is for clams and oysters and the Cephalopoda class is for bigger organisms like squid and octopus. The body semen try for the worm and the squid we dissected was symmetry but the clam was not it was more like a big blob of goo. The worm and squid were both equal if you cut them in half but the clam was not at all. All the dissections we did have very different textures and shapes and even smells. The worm was long and not slimy it was hard and thick skinned. The squid was slimy and squishy more like a sponge. The squid had a few hard parts to it where the worn did not. The clam had a hard shell and a squishy, slimy inside like the squid did, but the squid had eyes and was could swim and is mush bigger. The clams mantle is what keeps it protected from other creatures that may harm it. The mantle also helps from the clam being damaged from tides and currents. The Locomotion of a squid and clam compare is that they both have the same vascular system. Water goes in and out of the there bodies and help them move. A squid and octopus have camouflage because it helps protect them from predictors. Bivalves and Cephalopods do not have camouflage because they have shells that help protect the, and they can hide away were the squids and octopus can not. Bivalves eat by using there gills and they filter feed. Cephalopods eat other organisms like fish, worms and plants. Mollusks and humans are alike they have nervous systems and reproductive systems we share in common. Mussels have a special adaption to stay on shore they use there foot and they hold onto the rock or land. They have very strong leg that holds on and keeps them steady for a while. Octopus have very large brains and are considered by many that they are stupid but in fact they can be smart. They have a very good memory they can tell the difference between colors and toys. They use left and right like we do but they use there eyes to tell the difference. Mollusks help keep our oceans clean they help with the bacteria and mess. They are a big source of food for other organisms and helps keep other organisms reproducing. And there shells are used multiple times when one dies another moves in. 

Starfish Dissect

The Sea star also known as a starfish are beautiful creatures that life on our oceans floors. The Starfish is from the phylum Echoinodermata and it means that it is radially symmetrical coelenterate meaning every side of its body is the same looking. The phylum also consists of Sea Urchins, Sea cucumbers and even sand dollars because they all have the same type of systems. 

1. Sea Fish are in fact not fish at all because they don't swim they move around on the bottom with tube feet that are helpful for sticking to the ground 
2. The Coscinasterias Calamaria also known as the eleven-armed sea star has an arm spread that can go up to 30 cm and it can grow up to 14 arms and a sun star can grow up to 40 arms 
3. Sea stars do not have blood instead they have a water vascular system that helps them to move 
4. A Sea stars eyes are on the ends of each leg but they are only used to tell if its light of dark
5. A Sea star is born when egg and sperm collide together when they are released into the water a Sea star larvae are not much bigger than pinheads and 
the larvae float in the water until they grow a bit and they sink to the bottom. 

6. Some species of sea starts do care for there young until they grow but most let there young go and grow up on there own 

7. The Sun Sea star  are the head of the sea start family as they grow older more arms grow 
8. There is a sea star called the  leather sea star it isn’t prickly to the touch, but it sure is slippery. This sea star releases mucus over much of its body
9. The crown-of-thorns sea star can harm even humans who touch its long spines. A sting from one of these sea stars can be very painful a person will lose feeling if stung
10. Sea stars always grow back arms if they are cut off or broken and at some point if all the arms fall off they will all grow back if the core is not damaged