A tornaria is the planktonic

larva A larva (; plural larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into adults. Animals with indirect development such as insects, amphibians, or cnidarians typically have a larval phase of their life cycle. The ...

of some species of Hemichordata such as the

acorn worm The acorn worms or Enteropneusta are a Hemichordata, hemichordate class of invertebrates consisting of one order of the same name. The closest non-hemichordate relatives of the Enteropneusta are the echinoderms. There are 111 known species of aco ...

s. It is very similar in appearance to the

bipinnaria A bipinnaria is the first stage in the larval development of most starfish, and is usually followed by a brachiolaria stage. Movement and feeding is accomplished by the bands of cilia. Starfish that brood their young generally lack a bipinnaria s ...

larvae of

starfish Starfish or sea stars are star-shaped echinoderms belonging to the class Asteroidea (). Common usage frequently finds these names being also applied to ophiuroids, which are correctly referred to as brittle stars or basket stars. Starfish ...

es, with convoluted bands of

cilia The cilium, plural cilia (), is a membrane-bound organelle found on most types of eukaryotic cell, and certain microorganisms known as ciliates. Cilia are absent in bacteria and archaea. The cilium has the shape of a slender threadlike projecti ...

running around the body. It is an oval shaped, transparent larva. The diameter of the body is about 3 mm. It has an apical plate, which is a thickened region provided by a tuft of cilia and a pair of eye spots. The larva has a complete alimentary canal. The ciliary band stretches throughout the anterior and posterior region, and also the postoral region.

References

Larvae Hemichordates {{biology-stub