Has a Flattened Body Also Called Flatworm?

2-Min Summary. Flatworm, also called platyhelminth, any of the phylum Platyhelminthes, a group of soft-bodied, usually much flattened invertebrates. A number of flatworm species are free-living, but about 80 percent of all flatworms are parasitic—i.e., living on or in another organism and securing nourishment from it.

Do flatworms have a flat body?

Flatworms are hermaphroditic and capable of sexual and asexual reproduction. Their bodies have only a single opening, which serves as both a mouth and an anus. They are, as their name implies, flat. They have no circulatory system or body cavity (coelom), but they do have an excretory and digestive system.

Why are flatworms called flat?

Platyhelminthes are a group of invertebrates that are also called flatworms because their bodies are dorsoventrally flattened. Therefore, they appear leaf-like or ribbon-like creatures.