Live Invertebrates >> Platyhelminthes-Planaria >> Planaria Brown

Planaria sp. is a common freshwater, non-parasitic member of the phylum Platyhelminthes, class Turbellaria. It should be noted that the term "planaria" is most often used as a common name, much in the same way as trout. It is also the name of a genus within the family Planariidae. It moves by beating cilia on the ventral dermis, allowing it to glide along on a film of mucus. Some move by undulations of the whole body by the contractions of muscles built into the body wall.

They exhibit an extraordinary ability to regenerate lost body parts. For example, a Planaria split length wise or crosswise will regenerate into 2 separate individuals. The size ranges from 3 to 12 mm, and the body has two eye-spots (also known as ocelli) that can detect the intensity of light. The eye-spots act as photoreceptors and are used to move away from light sources. Planaria have 3 germ layers (ectoderm, mesoderm, and endoderm), but lack a body cavity or coelom. They have a single-opening digestive tract, consisting of one anterior branch and two posterior branches in freshwater planarians. Because of this three-branched organization, freshwater flatworms are often referred to as triclad planarians.