" The Big Picture!" by Mr C

Bio 11 Worm Lab Sheet                          Name____________________________

Your mission is to dissect a worm.

Using your “map” or diagram of worm anatomy, you will prepare a study guide which you can use for the lab quiz.

The lab quiz will be pictures of actual dissections or pictures of live worms.

You will also need to be able to discuss 5 systems of the worm.

1. Digestive system
2. Circulatory System
3. Excretory System
4. Nervous System
5. Reproductive System

A system is a group of organs, composed of tissues and cells. You will need to identify specific organs and their function.

You should also answer the following questions (from “Biology Corner”)

1. What is the name of the pumping organs of an earthworm?
2. Trace the parts of the digestive tract through which food passes.
3. Which parts of the earthworm serve as its brain?  How are these parts connected to the rest of the body?
4. Which of the parts of the worm’s body that you saw are included in the excretory system?
5. How can you find out whether an earthworm eats soil?
6. Among the earthworm’s structural adaptations are its setae. How do you think the earthworm’s setae make it well adapted to its habitat?
7. How is the earthworm’s digestive system adapted for extracting relatively small amounts of food from large amounts of ingested soil?
8. Your dissection of the earthworm did not go beyond segment 32.What will you observe if you dissect the remainder of the worm to its posterior end?
9. On a separate piece of paper, ( or your study guide) draw and label the parts of the earthworm you observed, and color code the systems. Use green for the reproductive system, yellow for the digestive system, blue for the excretory system, and red for the nervous system.
10. During mating, two earthworms exchange sperm. Fertilization is external, and cocoons are produced from which the young eventually emerge. Refer again to steps 5 and 11, where you located the earthworm’s reproductive organs. Use a reference to identify the role of each organ in the reproductive process of the earthworm. On a separate paper, summarize your findings.