Page 71 - A Field Guide to Fairfax County's Plants and Wildlife
P. 71
ARTHROPODS
Arthropods are a group of invertebrates (animals without backbones) that
share similar characteristics. The word arthropod means “jointed foot.”
Arthropods are the most diverse group of animals and constitute over
90 percent of the animal kingdom. They include the insects, centipedes,
spiders and shrimps. They are able to live on the land, in freshwater and in
the ocean. Arthropods share the following characteristics:
• Rigid exoskeleton (skeleton on the outside of the body) made of chitin
• Jointed appendages
• Bilateral symmetry (both sides of the body are the same)
• Segmented body
In order to grow, all arthropods must shed their exoskeleton and form a
new one, a process called molting.
This field guide is focused on the following four groups of arthropods:
• Insects
• Arachnids
• Crustaceans
• Myriapods
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Arthropods are a group of invertebrates (animals without backbones) that
share similar characteristics. The word arthropod means “jointed foot.”
Arthropods are the most diverse group of animals and constitute over
90 percent of the animal kingdom. They include the insects, centipedes,
spiders and shrimps. They are able to live on the land, in freshwater and in
the ocean. Arthropods share the following characteristics:
• Rigid exoskeleton (skeleton on the outside of the body) made of chitin
• Jointed appendages
• Bilateral symmetry (both sides of the body are the same)
• Segmented body
In order to grow, all arthropods must shed their exoskeleton and form a
new one, a process called molting.
This field guide is focused on the following four groups of arthropods:
• Insects
• Arachnids
• Crustaceans
• Myriapods
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