Platyhelminthes
/ˌplatɪhɛlˈmɪnθiːz
/plural noun Zoology
A phylum of invertebrates that comprises the flatworms.Like other members of the phylum Platyhelminthes, those of the class Turbellaria are dorsoventrally compressed, with high surface area to volume ratios....
- However, opinions do differ for the scoring of three phyla in particular: Platyhelminthes, Nemertea, and Rotifera (variously scored as primitively possessing or lacking a prototroch).
- The simplest animals that are bilaterally symmetrical and triploblastic (composed of three fundamental cell layers) are the Platyhelminthes, the flatworms.
Origin
Modern Latin (plural), from platy- 'flat' + Greek helminth 'worm'.