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An earthworm is defined as any segmented, cylindrical worm belonging to the class Oligochaeta. It is estimated that over 3,000 varieties of the common earthworm are in existence today.
HISTORY
During the last Ice Age, some 10,000-50,000 years ago, the worm population was almost entirely wiped out. As a result, many birds that relied on worms as food, also began to perish. As settlers moved from Europe, they tucked worms into their plants, having already heard of the worm's plight. After arriving in the New World, settlers began to stuff worms into the soil and within a few years, the worm population had returned.
DESCRIPTION
Earthworms are red in color and commonly 8-10 inches long and 1/4-inch in diameter. The earthworm's body is segmented to such a degree that its viewable to the naked eye. It is the segments of muscle tissue that allow the common earthworm to move forward and backward with equal ease.
EATING HABITS
The earthworm's mouth contains no teeth and is located at the forefront of the body. In order for a worm to eat, it must find an object small enough to fit into its mouth or soft enough to be crushed and squashed.
The earthworm has a taste organ called the "buccal cavity," located just behind the mouth, within the first few segments of its body. The worm uses this organ to determine what is edible and what is not. Once he has found an object that tastes good and is small enough to consume, he uses his pharynx to suck the food up. From the pharynx, the food is then drawn through the esophagus and into the worm's crop, where the digestion process begins. From the crop, the food is passed through a long tube and into the worm's gizzard. Sand particles and other course materials then help the worm to grind food, before passing it to the intestines.
Earthworms consume a wide variety of things including soil, gravel, decaying matter, leaves, rotting wood, and more.
AVOIDING DANGER
The thin, sensitive skin of the worm allows him to carefully monitor where he is at all times. Light, moisture, gravity, heat and vibrations are all understood by the worm, and help him to avoid possible danger. When the worm feels threatened, he leaves an area and continues to move forward until it finds a new and safe environment. Worms often leave their home territory and go in search of a safer environment when they sense overpopulation problems, inadequate food supplies, insects, predators, and molds and mildews.
REPRODUCTION
Worms are "hermaphroditic," meaning they have both male and female sex organs. Every worm also has two sperm receptacles. Despite this, it takes two worms to reproduce. Worms reproduce by moving close together and positioning their heads so that they are pointing in opposite directions. The worms then secrete a type of mucus, which bonds them together. Sperm is then released and carried by the grooves of their skin. Once the sperm has been passed, the worms separate. After the breeding worm has left, a second type of mucus is excreted and slides forward, toward the head of the worm. As it moves, it takes eggs from the oviducts and sperm from the receptacles. Once it reaches the head of the worm, it drops off and closes itself up into what is known as a "capsule." The fertilization process then takes place inside this capsule. After 2-3 weeks, 1-2 worms emerge from the capsule. During mating season, worms can form new capsules ever 3-4 days.
EARTHWORM FACTS
WORMS naturally enhance soil. Their constant burrowing causes air and water to reach deeper into the ground.
WORMS fertilize the ground in a way that chemical compounds could not. When worms feed on decaying material and the soil around it, they deposit waste products known as "casings" into the ground. The casings, which are made of mostly soil, are filled with enough nutrients to enrich the soil around them.
EARTHWORMS make tunnels that are at least 39-inches deep.
EARTHWORMS can breathe while under water. However, they cannot stay immersed for a long period of time.
EARTHWORMS show up on sidewalks and roads during a rainstorm because they're trying to get to safety. In order to avoid dying in flooded burrows, earthworms crawl out and become disoriented because of the vibration of rainstorms.
TODAY
The earthworms life hasn't changed much over the years. Today, they are used by humans for a variety of chores including:
ORGANIC GARDENS. Gardeners often buy worms in large stock in order to increase the organic content of soil.
BAIT. Fishermen (and fish) still favor the worm as bait.
MANURE. Two types of earthworms are commonly used in composting and casting production.
DOMESTICATED pets. There are a large group of people that privately breed earthworms. Some include fishermen, but more than a handful keep worm farms and the worm families they contain, as pets.
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