I am a lancelet, a type of cephalochordate found buried in sand in warm, shallow oceans. Humans find me delicious and important for studying vertebrate evolution. I enjoy relaxing in the sand all day with my anterior end exposed, filtering water for food. I have features like a notochord and pharyngeal slits that evolved into characteristics of vertebrates.

1. Sangita Kanumalla Subphylum: Cephalochordata

2. About Me! There is more to me than my simple, plain appearance and bilateral symmetry . I am someone who loves to relax. I come from a very small part of the animal kingdom Humans, especially in Asia, think that I am absolutely delicious and I am also extremely important to the study of how vertebrates have evolved and adapted. I am their closest cousins Lancelets

3. Where to Find Me Looking for me? You can find me buried in the sand in a warm, shallow, tropical or temperate oceans. I feed by filtering water.

4. My Hobbies I really enjoy laying in the water, particularly in the sand leaving my anterior end exposed You can find a lot of us laying on a beach in Jamaica or Tampa Bay Florida There are over 5,000 of us per square meter I really love relaxing all day and not having any worries (except getting eaten)

5. Some Interesting Facts About Me My ancestors devised an early form of swimming mechanism of fishes This allows me to swim to new locations when I am bored We have segmented muscle bands along the sides of our notochord We are suspension feeders We are suspension feeders Pharynx and gill slits are feeding structures

6. More Facts About Me! Notochord, Nerve Chord, Pharyngeal Slits, Postanal Tail Later evolved into vertebrates Gas exchange takes place on the external part of my body I have a closed circulatory system and no central heart-- DOES NOT MEAN I CANNOT LOVE! Unfortunately, our brain and sense organs are poorly developed but that doesn’t mean that I don’t have any feelings! I trap food in my pharynx I fertilize externally :)

7. My Ideal Mate I need someone who is willing to look past my unattractive appearance and look into my inner beauty and my heart (even though I really don’t have one!) Someone who loves to lay in the sand and relax all day

8. Works Cited Campbell, Neil A., and Jane B. Reece. Biology, Sixth Edition . San Francisco: Benjamin Cummings, 2001.This biology textbook described many important features of the cephalochordata &quot;Cephalochordata, Laboratory Notes for BIO 1003.&quot; 18 Apr. 2009 <http://faculty.baruch.cuny.edu/jwahlert/bio1003/chordata.html>.This website gave information on the anatomy of the cephalochordata &quot;Evolution and Comparative Anatomy of Vertebrates.&quot; 18 Apr. 2009. This website gave a lot of information on the evolution of the cephalochordata &quot;Introduction to the Cephalochordata.&quot; UCMP - University of California Museum of Paleontology . 18 Apr. 2009 <http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/chordata/cephalo.html>. This website gave a lot of information on the different habits and features of the cephalochordata