Concept in Definition ABC

At the behest of theZoology, the vertebrates, They are animals that have a skeleton with a backbone, skull and Central Nervous System composed of spinal cord and brain.

The vertebrates or vertebrata are part of the edge of the chordates, which are those animals that are distinguished by the presence of a dorsal cord or notochord. Approximately, it is estimated that there are between 50 and 61 thousand species of chordates, at the moment.

The vertebrate animal has had the ability to adapt to the different media that life proposes in this world, there are even many who have evolved in the sea and then passed to the terrestrial environment without problems.

The body of vertebrates is divided into three zones: head, trunk (The extremities stand out, which are pairs except for lampreys), which in turn is subdivided into thorax and abdomen and tail.

It should be distinguished that in the case of aquatic vertebrates they present a apparatus branchial respiratory system, while terrestrial vertebrates have a pulmonary respiratory system.

Another salient feature of vertebrates is the integument, which normally stands as the system organic more extensive of the animal, covering it completely and protecting it from the environment; the integument is made up of three layers: epidermis, dermis and hypodermis.

On the other hand, the skin of vertebrates generates epidermal formations, such as: sebaceous glands, appendages, mammary or sweat, and dermal formations, such as: the scales of fish, the bony plates of the shells of turtles, among others.

Meanwhile, the endocrine system of this type of animal is controlled by the hypothalamus and pituitary.

The reproduction of vertebrates is sexual, except in some fish that suffer from hermaphroditism; mammals have a greater complexity, since in them the embryos are gestated inside the mother receiving the feeding through the placenta.

Its origin dates back to the Cambrian explosion, at the beginning of the period Paleozoic.

Another recurring use of the word vertebrate allows to refer to that I divide, structured.