: Mollusks
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Body Form: The molluskan body form includes a soft body that produces an outer skin called the mantle. The mantle secretes a shell in most species, except in most of the cephalopods (squid, octopus, and cuttlefish). Most species feed with a rasping tongue called the radula, but cephalopods have beaks to crush prey.
Diet: Mollusc diet varies with the species. Most snails are herbivores; bivalves are filter feeding planktivores; squid and octopi are predators.
Natural History: The mollusks are the 2nd most successful body plan on earth. The algae feeders graze over hard surfaces for algae while bivalves draw water in and push water out through siphons to strain it for food. Most mollusks are slow moving, except for the squid which are among the fastest animals in the ocean, moving by jet propulsion.
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