THE EARTHWORMS. 357 



like these glands is known in any other animal. The 

 oesophagus, lower down, is enlarged into a crop in front 

 of the gizzard, which opens into an intestine of a very 

 remarkable structure." 



Worms breathe by the skin, as they do not possess any 

 special respiratory organs. The two sexes are united in 

 the same individual, but two individuals pair together, 

 mutual fecundation taking place by means of the thickened 

 knot (clitellum) on the body. The nervous system is fairly 

 well developed, and the two almost confluent cerebral 

 ganglia are situated very near the anterior end of the body. 



Worms are destitute of eyes ; and Hoffmeister states 

 that they are, with the exception of a few individuals, 

 extremely sensitive to light. Darwin did not always find 

 this to be the case. 



Worms do not possess any sense of hearing, but are 

 extremely sensitive to vibrations in any solid object. 



" The whole body of a worm is sensitive to contact. A 

 slight puff of air from the mouth causes an instant retreat." 



" Worms are very timid. It may be doubted whether 

 they suffer as much pain when injured as they seem to 

 express in their contortions. Judging by their eagerness 

 for certain kinds of foods, they must enjoy the pleasure 

 of eating. Worms are omnivorous. They swallow an 

 enormous quantity of earth, out of which they extract any 

 digestible matter which it may contain. They also con- 

 sume a large number of half-decayed leaves of all kinds." 



Of the eleven species of British earth-worms, those 

 principally used by anglers are : 



1. Lutnbricus terrestris, the EARTH-WORM, LOB, or DEW- 

 WORM of Hofland, Stoddart, and Younger. The skin reflects 

 a beautiful iridescence, more especially from the dorsal 

 margins of the segments ; the basis of the minute spines 

 placed on each side of the body is of a clear brown. It 

 is common everywhere, and delights in a wet, loose soil. 



2. Lumbricus minor, the MARSH-WORM or RED-HEAD of 

 Stoddart, RED-WORM of Hofland, peacock-red or black- 

 headed RED- WORM, SEGG-WORM, the TROUT- WORM. The 

 skin is not iridescent, or only very slightly so. Found in 



