The second largest group of animals after the phylum Arthropoda, mollusks are a group of soft bodied invertebrates with about 130,000 species worldwide. They encompass an extremely diverse group of creatures including snails, bivalves like mussels, clams, scallops, and oysters, and cephalopods like squids and octopuses, just to name a few! Mollusks can be found in the sea, on land, and in fresh water. Despite common features, each of these groups has its own distinctive characteristics.
The second largest group of animals after the phylum Arthropoda, mollusks are a group of soft bodied invertebrates with about 130,000 species worldwide. They encompass an extremely diverse group of creatures including snails, bivalves like mussels, clams, scallops, and oysters, and cephalopods like squids and octopuses, just to name a few! Mollusks can be found in the sea, on land, and in fresh water. Despite common features, each of these groups has its own distinctive characteristics.