n. Phylum Chordata. A diverse phylum (grouping) of animals that possesses at some stage of life a notochord, a dorsal, hollow nerve cord, pharnygeal gill slits, and typically a tail that extends past the anus.
An animal having a notochord, or primitive spinal structure, at some stage of development; a member of the phylum Chordata, such as a vertebrate.
an animal with an internal 'rod' of flexible tissue which supports its body. This rod can be bone or cartilage. Chordates with bony notochords are called vertebrates - for example mammals (including humans), fish, birds and reptiles. Invertebrate chordates include worms.
A member of the phylum Chordata, which includes the tunicates, lancelets, and vertebrates. They are animals with a hollow dorsal nerve cord; a rodlike notochord that forms the basis of the internal skeleton; and paired gill slits in the wall of the pharynx behind the head, although in some chordates these are apparent only in early embryonic stages. All vertebrates are chordates, but the phylum also contains simpler types, such as sea-squirts, in which only the free-swimming larva has a notochord.
n. An animal with a notochord (a cartilaginous rod that extends the length of the body), dorsal hollow nerve cord (a fluid-filled tube that runs the length of the body), gill slits or pouches, and a tail at some stage in its life cycle.
Chordates (phylum Chordata) are a group of animals that includes the vertebrates, together with several closely related invertebrates. They are united by having, at some time in their life, a notochord, a hollow dorsal nerve cord, pharyngeal slits, an endostyle, and a muscular tail extending past the anus. Some scientists argue that the true qualifier should be pharyngeal pouches rather than slits.
