Structure:
Animals that have a definite front and back, and a left and a right side,
are called bilaterally symmetrical animals. For example, the head of a
horse, it's cranium or skull, is in
the anterior location; the back is the dorsal location; the tail, it's
caudal part, is in the posterior location, and the belly is in the ventral
location. These names apply to tetrapods,
but can also be applied to humans, which are bipeds.
Function:
The names that scientists apply to the location on a vertebrate
animal help them describe the part of focus. Using the terms cranial and
caudal, usually avoids any confusion from differences in posture by tetrapods
and bipeds.
