In order to be considered part of the phylum Chordata, an animal must have a backbone. What other characteristics does this phylum share?

A. Complete digestive system, lack of segmentation, and true body cavity
B. No central brain, incomplete body cavity, and radial symmetry
C. Exoskeleton, jointed feet, and simple nervous system
D. Complete body cavity, segmentation, and bilateral symmetry

Question

In order to be considered part of the phylum Chordata, an animal must have a backbone. What other characteristics does this phylum share?

A. Complete digestive system, lack of segmentation, and true body cavity
B. No central brain, incomplete body cavity, and radial symmetry
C. Exoskeleton, jointed feet, and simple nervous system
D. Complete body cavity, segmentation, and bilateral symmetry

chpatterson · Answer

The answer is A - Complete digestive system, lack of body segmentation and a true body cavity. 


Not B, because we definitely do have a central brain 
Not C, because as humans and many of the other animal species in Chordata we have an internal skeleton and we do not have joined feet. 
Not D, because we do not exhibit segmentation.