Hearing : Earthworms have no ears, but their bodies can sense the vibrations of animals moving nearby. Thinking and feeling : Worms have a brain that connects with nerves from their skin and muscles. Their nerves can detect light, vibrations, and even some tastes, and the muscles of their bodies make movements in response. Breathing : Worms breathe air in and carbon dioxide out, just like us, but they don't have lungs. They can't breathe through their mouth, and certainly can't breathe through their nose because they don't even have one!
They breathe through their skin. Air dissolves on the mucus of their skin, so they MUST stay moist to breathe. If worms dry out, they suffocate. As fresh air is taken in through the skin, oxygen is drawn into the worm's circulatory system, and the worm's hearts pump the oxygenated blood to the head area.
The movements of the worm's body make the blood flow back to the back end of the body, and the hearts pump the blood forward again. Carbon dioxide dissolves out of the blood back to the skin. Eating : Worms do not have teeth, but their mouths are muscular and strong. Nightcrawlers can even pull leaves into their burrows using their strong mouths. The front end of the worm, its prostomium , is pointed and firm, making it easy for worms to push their way into crevices as they eat their way through their burrows.
The mouth of the worm is just behind the prostomium. Worms swallow pieces of dirt and decaying leaves, and the food passes through the pharynx , located in body segments , the esophagus segments , and into the crop, which stores food temporarily.
The worm's stomach is very muscular, so is called a gizzard. Like a bird's gizzard, it grinds up the food, which then moves into the intestine. The intestine extends over two-thirds of the worm's body length.
Red wigglers avoid predators:. The dark red coloration of red wiggles allows them to easily blend in with their surroundings. The digestive system of red wigglers allows them to eat rotting organic waste. They are able to convert these materials into compost nutrient-rich soil that plants can use for food.
Red wigglers can move through the soil:. The body of a red wiggler is divided into different parts, known as segmentation. The round segments and many muscles allow them to move more easily and burrow through the soil. They also have tiny bristle-like structures on each segment called chaetae.
These hairs assist them in moving through and over soil. Red wigglers use several senses:. Earthworms do not have eyes like humans. Instead, they have light receptors that detect when it is light or dark. If a worm surfaces during the day, it is more likely to be found by a predator or dry out in the sunlight. Earthworms do not have ears. They are able to sense vibrations made by the sounds of nearby animals on or within the soil.
They also have cells called chemoreceptors that detect chemicals in the soil, allowing them to "taste". Red wigglers breathe through their skin:. Like humans, earthworms breathe oxygen and release carbon dioxide. Earthworms do not have lungs but instead breathe through their skin.
Air dissolves on the mucus of the skin which is why they must stay moist. If they dry out, they suffocate. Behavioral Adaptations. Red wigglers are nocturnal:. They are active during the night nocturnal. Additionally, worms give off carbon dioxide, which is also diffused through their skin. It is important to have a good circulation of air throughout your worm bin bedding for this exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide to successfully take place.
A: Most earthworms die within the same year they were born. In natural environments, the effects of extreme weather, lack of food or water, and presence of predators all shorten the lifespan of worms. In controlled culture, some varieties of worm have been shown to live longer. Worms of the Eisenia fetida species have been able to live for four and half years, and the Lumbricus terrestris species even longer.
But an average lifespan is much shorter. In a healthy worm bin, worms will reproduce, replacing themselves and increasing the worm population. Worms will, of course, die wherever they happen to be. This is because the process of decomposition happens quickly. Other organisms in the bin will break down dead worms, likely before you even notice. However, if you find a large quantity of dead worms, you need to diagnose and fix the problem quickly. This could be as simple as adding or replacing some fresh bedding toward which the worms can crawl, but likely requires you to correct a larger problem, like temperature or pH balance in the bin, to prevent mass worm die-off.
I recently started a worm bin.
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