Chordata

Latin   chordata = chord

Phylum that contains the mammals including Man. The main characteristic is the presence of the notochord that is the precursor to the backbone in humans.  For a full treatment of the characteristics of this phylum see:

Five Kingdoms
A multimedia guide to the phyla of life on earth
World Biodiversity Database CD-ROM SERIES

Philips Atlas of the Oceans by John Pernetta
ISBN 0-540-06275-8

All serious biological text books will cover this subject, as well as
Encylopaedia Britannica

Systematics of the Vertebrates (University of Berkeley, California, USA)

Higher Classification Notes

  British Marine Fish List