You are given leech, Nereis, Scolopendra, prawn and scorpion; and all have segmented body organisation. Will you classify them in one group? If no, give the important characters based on which you will separate these organisms into different groups
The organisms given in the question are not belong to the same group. Leech and nereis belong to the phylum Annelida while scolopendra, prawn and scorpion belong to the phylum Arthropoda. The distinguish features of both the phylum are given below:
Annelida | Arthropoda |
Appendages are not jointed. | Appendages are jointed. |
Exoskeleton absent | Exoskeleton present. |
Animals are metamerically segmented both externally as well as internally. | Animals are segmented both internally as well as externally. |
Excretion by nephridia. | Excretion by Malpighian tubules or green glands. |