What is the swollen band around the earthworm called?
An adult earthworm has a distinct, swollen, slightly light-colored band on its body. We call it a clitellum (pronounced “klei-TE-lem”, plural: clitella.) The two regions on either side of the clitellum are not the same length.
What is the band around a worm?
The clitellum is a thick, saddle-like ring found in the epidermis (skin) of the worm, usually with a light-colored pigment. To form a cocoon for its eggs, the clitellum secretes a viscous fluid. This organ is used in sexual reproduction of some annelids, such as leeches.
What is the bump on an earthworm?
The bump is the clitellum, the saddle shaped swollen area 1/3 of the way back containing the gland cells which secrete a slimy material (mucus) to form the cocoon which will hold the worm embryos.
Do worms feel pain when you hook them?
Since man began making tools, he has been baiting fishhooks with worms, generally assuming that a worm impaled by a hook feels no pain.
What do ribbon worms spit out?
The white stuff the ribbon worm ejects from its mouth is its proboscis, which it everts – turns inside out – from a chamber located just above its mouth when it attacks its prey. The sticky tentacles of the proboscis then shoots out and acts like a net to grab hold of and immobilise prey.
What is the longest sea worm?
Bootlace worm
Do ribbon worms have a purpose?
The stylet may also be used for burrowing; in land-dwelling species it may be used for rapid movement. The ribbon worms are the simplest animals to possess a circulatory system and a gut with a separate mouth and anus. The body is usually long and slender and is often extended greatly during movement.
Where do ribbon worms come from?
Ribbon worms, or nemerteans, are a group of very unusual worms related to mollusks and annelids. Most ribbon worms live in the ocean, and some can grow to over 100 feet long, but are usually much less than an inch wide. Some species live on land or in freshwater.