LEECHES 



feed chiefly on worms, insect larvae, and decayed matter, but 

 also suck blood. 





Fig. 121. — The best known worm leech, Herpo- 

 bdella punctata: i, dorsal; 2, ventral. 



Herpobdella punctata. — This is the largest and best known 

 memiber of the family, others in the group have similar char- 

 acteristics (Fig, I2i). The adults are i to 4 inches long and 

 vary in color from a light chocolate brown to a pure coal black. 

 They are widely distributed, common in New England, in 

 small glacial ponds near Woods Hole and in the Charles River. 



157 



A 



