What are Squishies and Crunchies?

These two terms are coined arbitrarily to make them easier to identify in our everyday lives. Although these terms are not very scientific, they do represent the two major modern lineages of invertebrates (animals lacking a true backbone).

I am sure we have all accidentally stepped on these invertebrate creatures before. If they squished when stepped on, they belonged to an invertebrate lineage called the lophotrochozoans that are mostly soft-bodied. If they crunched, then they belonged to an invertebrate lineage called the ecdysozoans that are mostly hard-bodied.

In this website, we say goodbye to the familiar vertebrates and enter the strange world of invertebrate biology.

Squishes and Crunchies in Love

Our squishy and crunchy friends far surpass the vertebrates in species number, and they show a much greater diversity in lifestyles. A key part of their success is the adaptations they have evolved to reproduce their own kind. This website is dedicated to highlighting fun and accurate facts about their reproductive biology and behavior.

You can access the cartoons in this website through the following links:

• Evolutionary tree - See how the various groups of squishies and crunchies are related to us, and to each other. Click on highlighted groups to find out more information about the groups and examples of their reproductive biology.
• Steps in reproduction - This page gives an overview of the reproductive process, with links to see examples of the bizarre adaptations that invertebrates have evolved at each step in the process.