Earthworms and leeches are the familiar annelids for most
people, but polychaetes comprise the bulk of the diversity of Annelida and are
found in nearly every marine habitat, from intertidal algal mats downwards.
There are even pelagic polychaetes that swim or drift, preying on other
plankton, and a few groups occurring in fresh water and moist terrestrial
surroundings. Around 9000 species of polychaetes are currently recognized with
several thousand more names in synonymy, and the overall systematics of the
group remains unstable
No comments:
Post a Comment