NAME ______
WORM LAB FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS
LATIN MEANING
KINGDOM ______
PHYLUM ______
CLASS ______
1. Which body part do Earthworms have that gives them 
 their PHYLUM name OLIGOCHAETA meaning “few bristles”? ______
2. How does its coloration (darker on the dorsal surface) help the earthworm? 
______
3. The NEPHRIDIA in earthworms have the same function as ______in humans.
4. Which form of nitrogen waste is excreted by earthworms? ______
5. Digestive waste exits through the ______.
6. Nitrogen waste is collected by TUBULES called ______and exits through 
 ______.
7. Trace the parts of the digestive tract through which food passes in order starting at 
 the mouth and ending at the anus.
mouth  ______ ______ ____________ ______ anus
8. Number of openings in an earthworm’s digestive system? 0 1 2 
9. Earthworms are HERMAPHRODITES. Explain what that means.
______
10. Earthworms have no bones. What acts as the skeleton in an earthworm?
______
11. Tell 2 ways that the earthworm’s digestive systemis adapted for extracting as many nutrients as possible from a large amount of relatively non-nutritious food (soil)?
1.______
2. ______
12. USE the words DORSAL AND VENTRAL to compare the LOCATION of the HEART 
 and NERVE CORD in vertebrates and invertebrates. How are they different?
INVERTEBRATES have a ______heart and ______nerve cord.
VERTEBRATES have a ______heart and a ______nerve cord.
COMPARE/CONTRAST / CROP / GIZZARDHow does it feel?
Function
COMPARE/CONTRAST / SEMINAL
RECEPTACLES / SEMINAL
VESICLES
Size
Stores sperm from?
Circle ALL that apply to EARTHWORMS:
 Acoelom Pseudocoelom Eucoelom 
 Invertebrate protostomes Invertebrate deuterostomes Vertebrate deuterostomes 
blastopore  mouth blastopore  anus 
 determinate spiral cleavage indeterminate radial cleavage
 External fertilization Internal fertilization
 Indirect Development Direct development 
  HERMAPHRODITE SEPARATE MALE and FEMALE SEXES 
 
 Asexual Reproduction Sexual Reproduction
 Open circulation Closed circulation
 No cephalization Cephalization
 VENTRAL nerve cord/DORSAL heart DORSAL nerve cord/VENTRAL heart
Asymmetry Radial symmetry Bilateral symmetry
Name the EARTHWORM part described below:
Provides traction when crawling ______
NON-CELLULAR coating that protects 
 skin and prevents drying out ______
Fleshy flap of skin that covers and protects the
worm’s mouth and can sense light/dark ______
Carries sperm from male genital pore to clitellum ______
Openings on ventral surface for seminal vesicles ______
Divides coelom into compartments ______
Tubules that collect and excrete nitrogen waste ______
Makes sperm ______
Makes eggs ______
Stores sperm made by this worm to give away ______
Stores sperm received from other worms ______
Acts as heart to pump blood ______
Pulls food into the digestive system ______
Carries food from pharynx to crop ______
Stores soil waiting to be digested ______
Grinds food ______
Absorbs nutrients from digested food ______
Infolding INSIDE intestine to provide 
surface area and increase absorption of nutrients ______
Acts as the brain ______
Makes mucous for reproduction ______
