More than 2200 species of the wild flora and fauna photographed in Zihuatanejo, Guerrero, Mexico and the surrounding area.
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Flatworms of Zihuatanejo
ORDER POLYCLADIDA
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Flatworms (Phylum Platyhelminthes)
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Subphylum Rhabditophora
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Polyclad Flatworms (Order Polycladida)
Order Polycladida comprises a diverse group of free-living marine flatworms within the class Turbellaria (traditionally) of the phylum Platyhelminthes. Found primarily on coral reefs, rocky shores, seagrass beds, and other shallow marine habitats throughout tropical and temperate oceans, polyclads are renowned for their brilliantly colored and intricately patterned bodies, which often rival the beauty of nudibranchs. They possess broad, flattened bodies with numerous highly branched intestinal diverticula—reflected in the name Polycladida, meaning "many branches"—that distribute nutrients throughout the body. Most species are active predators or scavengers, feeding on small invertebrates such as crustaceans, mollusks, ascidians, and other worms, using a protrusible pharynx to capture and consume prey.
