Classification

Subphylum I. Eleutherozoa
(Gr., eleutheros, free +zoios, animal)
Free-living echinoderms.
Class 1. Asteroidea
(Gr., aster, star + eidos, form)
1. Starfishes or sea stars.
2. Arms 5 or more and not sharply marked off
from the central disç.
3 Tube feet in orally placed ambulacral
grooves, with sucker_.
4. Anus and madreporite aboral
5. Pedicellariae present.
6. Free-living, slow-creeping, predaceous and
Scavengerous. 2 m
Subclass 1. Somasteroidea
Palaeozoic sea stars. Platasterias
Fossil
latiradiata is the only living species.
Subclass 2. Euasteroidea
Living sea stars.
Order 1. Phanerozonia
with
1. Body with marginal plates and usually
papulac, aboral surface.
on

Pedicellariae sessile, not

crossed.
2.
3. Tube feet without suckers.
in soft bottom.
4. Mostly burrowers Goniaster,
Examples Astropecten, Luidia,
Oreaster (=Pentaceros)
Order 2. Spinulosa
plates
without conspicuous marginal
1. Usually surfaces.
on both
and with papulae
2. Pedicellariae rare.
2.
3. Tube fecet with suckers.
Aboral surface with low spines.
4. Pteraster,
Examples Asterina, Solaster,
Echinaster.
Order 3. Forcipulata
No conspicuous marginal plates.
and straight or
1.
2. Pedicellariae pedunculate
crossed type.
Four rows of tube
lect.
3
Examples : Asterias, Heliaster
 Snc
assificati
usstfication
D nd pes
Types
Class2. Ophiuroidea
(Gr., ophis, snake +oura, tail+
Brittle-stars and allies. eidos, form)
1.
Body star-like with arms sharply
from the central disc. marked off
3 Pedicellariae absent.
4. Stomach sac-like;, no anus.
5. Ambulacral grooves absent or
covered by
ossicles; tube feet without suckers.
6. Madreporite oral
Order 1. Ophiurae
1. Brittle and serpent stars.
2. Small and five-armed.
3. Arms transversely.
move
4. Disc and arms usually covered with plates.
Examples: Ophiura, Ophiothrix, Ophiodena,
Ophiopholis.
Order 2. Euryalae
1. Arms simple or branched.
Arms move vertically.
3. Disc and arms covered by soft skin.
star),
Examples: Gorgonocephalus (basket
Asteronyx.
Class 3. Echinoidea 44
(Gr., echinos, hedgehog + eidos, form)
dollars.
1. Sea urchins and semi-spherical
and
oval or
2 Body discoid,
without arms. movable
compact
bearng
or test
33. Skeleton
three- jawed
pedicellariae.
with
spines and
lantem
Anstotle's
or
apparatus
44. Chewing
ossicles; tube
teeth. covercd by
Ambulacral
grooves
5.
feet with suckers.
less
G o n a d s
usually liveor
I . B o t h r i o c i d a r o i d a

plates n cach
Class3. Echinoidea

(Gr., echinos,
urchins and
hcdgchog+ eidos, form)
Sca
e
dollars.
Body discoid, oval or
without arms. semi-spherical and
Skeleton or test
and three-
compact bearing movable
spines
jawed pedicellariaeae.
Chewing apparatus or Aristotle's lantern
teeth. with
5 Ambulacral
grooves covered by ossicles; tube
feet with suckers.
6. Gonads usually five or less
Subclass 1. Bothriocidaroida
1. A single row of plates in each
inter-ambulacral area.
2. Without typical lantern.
3. Madreporite radial.
Example/: Single extinct Ordovician
genus
Bothriocidaris.
Subclass 2. Regularia
1. Body globular, pentamerous, with two rows
of inter-ambulacral
plates in existing
members.
2 Mouth central.
Aristotle's lantern well developed.
 4. Anus central on aboral surface with
well-developed apical plates.
5. Madreporite oral.
f Order 1. Lepidocentroida
1. Test flexible with overlapping plates.
2. Ambulacral plates extend up to mouth lip.
3. Inter-ambulacral plates in more than two
y rows in extinct forms.
Example: Palaeodiscus.
Order 2. Melonechinoida
1. Test spherical and rigid.
2. Ambulacral plates continue to mouth lip.
3. Inter-ambulacral plates in four or more rows.
4. Wholly extinct, carboniferous.
Example : Melonechinus.
Order 3. Cidaroida
1. Test globular and rigid.
2. Two rows of long narrow ambulacral plates
and two rows of inter-ambulacral plates.
3. No peristomial gills.
4. Anus aboral and central.
Examples Histocidaris, Goniocidaris.

Order 4. Diadematoida
1. Test globular usually with compound
ambulacral plates.
2. Peristomial gills present.
d 3. Anus aboral and central.
Arbacia.
Examples : Diadema, Echinus,
e Subclass 3. Irregularia
1. Body oval or circular, flattened oral-aborally.
on oral
h 2. Mouth central or displaced anteriorly
surface.
ee 3.3. Anus marginal, outside the apical system of
plates.
4 Tube fcet generally not locomotor.
Order 1. Holectypoida
hh 1. Test regular with simple ambulacra and
centrally located peristome and apical
system.
2 Lantern present.
s 3 Mostly extinct
Examples Holectypus, Echinoneus.
 and tWI

3. No peristomial gills.
4. Anus aboral and central.
Goniocidaris.
Examples : Histocidaris,
Order 4. Diadematoida
with compound
1. Test globular usually
ambulacral plates.
2 Peristomial gills present.
3 Anus aboral and central.
Arbacia.
Examples : Diadema, Echinus,
Subclass 3. Irregularia
oval circular, flattened oral-aborally.
1. Body or
anteriorly on oral
2 Mouth central or displaced
surface.
of
33. Anus marginal, outside the apical system
plates.
4. Tube feet generally not locomotor.

Order 1. Holectypoida
ambulacra and
1. Test regular with simple
located peristome and apical
centrally
system.
2. Lantern present.
3. Mostly extinct.
Examples: Holectypus, Echinoneus.
Order 2. Cassiduloida

1. Aboral ambulacral areas petaloid, forming a

five-armed figure like petals of a flower.
2. Lantern absent.
3 Mostly extinct.
Example: Cassidulhus.
 Echinodermata and Types
814] Order 4. Molpadonia
tentacles.
Order 3. Clypeastroida 1. 15 digitate
shape.
with oval or
rounded
2. No tube feet.
1. Test flattened Posterior end tail-like.
excentric.
Mouth central, anus 3.
2 ambulacral areas petaloid. 4.
Respiratory tree present.
3. Aboral Caudina
Aristotle's lantern present. Examples : Molpadia,
4. Order 5. Apoda
5. Gills absent.
Worm-like s e a cucumbers.
6. Bottom dwellers. 1.
Examples Sand dollars Ciypeaster No tube feet and respiratory tree.
2.
Echinarachinus, Echinocyamus. 3. Burrowing.
Order 4. Spatangoida
with excentric
Examples : Leptosynapta, Synapta.
oval or heart-shaped Subphylum II. Pelmatozoa
1. Test
mouth and anus.
pataloid. (Gr., pelnmatos, stalk + zooios, animal)
ambulacral areas
2.
2. Four aboral
Stalked, sedentary echinoderms.
Lantern absent.
3.
4. Gills absent.
Class 5. Crinoidea
5. Burrowing. crinon, lily + eidos, form)
Heart urchins; Spatangu4s, (Gr.,
Examples 1. Sca lillies.
Echinocardium lovenia, Hemipneustes.
whole of life
2 Body attached during part or
by an aboral stalk.
Class 4. Holothuroidea
cucumber + eidos,
(Gr., holothurion, sea
3. Mouth and anus on oral surface.
form) 4. Arms with pinnules.
1. Sea cucumbers. 5. Tube feet without suckers; no madreporite,
No arm5, no spines. wall spines and pedicellariac.
body
Body elongate on oral-aboral axis; 6. Ciliated ambulacral grooves on oral surface.

leathery. Order Articulata

Mouth anterior, surrounded by tentacles. 1. Living sea lillies and feather stars.
Ambulacral grooves concealed; tube feet with 2. Feather stars non-sessile and free swimming.
suckers. Antedon (sea lily), Neometra
for respiration, Examples
6. Usually with respiratory tree (feather star).
Order 1. Dendrochirota
branched. A Few Other
1. Tentacles irregularly
feet numerous, on the sole or all Echinoderms
2. Tube
1. Pentaceros (=Oreaster). Pentaceros is often
ambulacral or entire surface.
Respiratory tree present. referred to as Indian seas
sea _pcntagon' of
Examples Cucumaria, Thyone. because of its resemblance to a pentago
Order 2. Aspidochirota Central disc is large and the five arms are sn
1 Tentacles peltate or leaf-like. and tapering. Two are not clearly demarcatea
2 Tube fect numerous, sometimes forming a Aboral surface is convex and bears rows
well-developed sole. definitely arranged spines. Aboral skeleton
Respiratory tree present. reticulate, enclosing popular arcas in its meshes
Examples Holothuria, Actinopyga. Upper marginal plates are smaller than tne
Order 3. Elasipoda
Ventral ones and often concealed trom e
Tentacles leaf-like
Aboral surface bears immovable tubercles,
2. No respiratory trce.
madreporite and anus. Oral surface is conc
3 Tube fect webbca together to form fins
having a central mouth, communicating with t
Deep-sea dwellers ambulacral grooves, each bearing two doubk
Examplc Pelagothuna nd
TOwS of tube teet. Pedicellariae are small an