Rabbits and guinea pigs both belong to class Mammalia. this means they must also both belong to <u>Phylum Chordata.</u>
The term "chordate" can be defined as "the class of animals that, at least throughout some stage of their development into adulthood, possess the following four anatomical features:
(1) notochord,
(2) dorsal nerve cord,
(3) tail, and
(4) pharyngeal slits."
An animal belonging to the phylum Chordata is a chordate. At some point during their larval or adult phases, all chordates have five synapomorphies, or primary traits, that set them apart from all other taxa.
The notochord is the distinguishing feature of the chordates and plays crucial roles in the development of vertebrates.
It acts as a major skeletal component of the growing embryo as well as a source of midline signals that design neighboring tissues.
