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Phylum Platyhelminthes includes flatworms. This phylum belongs to kingdom Animalia and includes more than 13000 species. Organisms of this phylum range from single-celled to 2 to 3 feet long in size.
Flatworms or Platyhelminthes are acoelomate, bilaterally symmetrical, soft bodies invertebrate animals. They are found in marine water, freshwater, and also in moist terrestrial habitat. Platyhelminthes is the largest phylum amongst the acoelomates. Flatworms have no specialized respiratory and circulatory organs and it restricts them to have a flattened body shape. Their flattened body shape allows the nutrients and oxygen to pass through their bodies by the process of diffusion. Their digestive cavity has only one opening which is used for both intake of nutrients (ingestion) and removal of undigested food (egestion). Due to this body structure their food cannot be processed continuously.
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