SCIENCE: Animals and Plants
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Find out more about animals that have or do not have bones.
Bones or No Bones? Scientists classify or group animals together based on features that make them alike. • An animal with a spine or a backbone is called a vertebrate . ( vur -tuh-brit) • An animal without a spine or a backbone is an invertebrate . (in- vur -tuh-brit). Believe It or Not! All fish are vertebrates. But sharks are a little unusual. While sharks do have a spine, it’s not made of bone. It’s made of cartilage. Cartilage bends more easily than bone. Having a cartilage backbone is what helps make sharks such fast swimmers! How are spiders, jellyfish, worms, snails, and sea stars alike? They may look different, they may live in different places, but all these animals are invertebrates!
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