Transcript Group 4-4 Worm Book

Diary of a Worm:
A Digital Book by Room 4-4.
Written by
Spencer Brown
Sarah Holsberg
Shio Kohiyama
Andreas Marinos
Galen Odell
Ian Parker
Tia Schioppo
Theo Strongin
© 2008 Room 4-4 The Parkside School New York, NY
Table of Contents
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Introduction by Galen Odell……………………..pg. 3
Anatomy by Ian Parker…………………………..pg. 5
Food by Tia Schioppo……………………………pg. 6
Helping Environment by Theo Strongin…………pg. 7
Worms and Their Senses by Andreas Marinos…..pg.8
Reproduction by Sarah Holsberg……………….. pg. 9
Vermicomposting by Spencer Brown……………pg. 10
Life in a Wormery by Shio Kohiyama…………...pg. 12
Cool Facts by Ms. Klenk and Ms. Kim…………..pg. 14
Introduction
Worms are intelligent animals that perform an important job for our
earth. We help to consume the planet’s garbage and make the soil more
fertile or rich in the materials needed for plants to grow. Worms are soft
and thin with no bones or legs. We are invertebrates (we have no
backbone). Although we have no legs, we can crawl because we have two
types of strong muscles. Our outer layer of muscles are like rings around
our body, and they squeeze us, making us strrretccch forward. Our inner
muscles are long and when they contract, we get shorter and the back end
of our body moves up toward our front end. We strrretccch and contract
over and over to move forward. Also to help us move, we have tiny bristles
on each of our segments called setae, and we ooze mucus which helps us
slide smoothly. We are alive of course; we need food and water to survive
and we reproduce.
Earthworms
Introduction (continued)
We also need to stay moist and try to avoid the sun. Usually when
you think of worms, you’ll think of earthworms that tunnel underground
in the soil. But there are lots of other worms that live in a variety of
habitats. Some worms live in water. Ice worms live inside glaciers and
deep-sea tubeworms live around boiling water near the ocean floor.
There are even metal-eating “superworms” discovered at old mining
sites in England that feast on toxic waste and actually help clean
polluted land. Worms come in all sizes too. Some, such as the Giant
Australian earthworms, can grow more than 10 feet long. Ribbon
worms can be 100 feet long! At the opposite extreme are inchworms
and other worms that are so tiny, they can only be seen through a
microscope.
Deep-sea Tubeworms
Super worms
Anatomy of a Worm
Hi I am a worm. I’m going to tell you about the anatomy of a
worm. My segments look like little rings. Adult worms have 120-170
segments. I have 5 hearts that pump my blood through my body.
My bristles are small hairs called setae. They help me move. Now
the front & back ends. The front is the anterior, the back is the
posterior.
When worms mate their clitella join and they exchange sperm.
The clitellum is a swollen band.
Food
Worms like me who live on the surface like to eat dead grass and
leaves. But mostly I like to eat organic materials like fruits, vegetables,
and plants. Worms like my friend Squirmy, that live underground, eat
mostly dirt. We both eat bacteria and algae and fungi. Worms eat about
half our body weight every day.
I suck dirt into my mouth like a vacuum. Then it moves into my
gizzard, that acts like teeth to grind the food. Next it goes into my
intestines to break down more to be used as fuel by the rest of my body.
The left over nutrients that my body did not use come out my back
end as castings. Castings are very important to the environment, you
know! They help farmers have rich soil to grow plants and trees.
Worms Helping our Environment
I may be puny but I play the most important part of any
animal in my ecosystem. A long, long time ago, Charles
Darwin was the first human to notice my actions and what I do
for the soil. I burrow in the ground and make it fertile. The
pathways I make help air and water get into the soil. and that
helps plants grow because plants’ roots can get more oxygen
and water.
“Worm castings” is a fancy way to say worm poop. my
castings are important because they soften the soil, control
fungi, improve plant growth and eliminate odor. my fertilizer
(a.k.a. my poop) doesn’t pollute the ground, unlike the
chemical fertilizers those humans make.
Worm castings
Worms and their Senses
Did you know worms breathe through
their skin? Did you know worms in
particular can only eat and feel? They can’t
see or hear. Did you know worms can only
eat things up to two millimeters long? They
also can move by their bristles which are
really small hairs. Worms have little rings on
their bodies called segments which helps
them move and curl.
Reproduction
Here is how I reproduce. Another worm & I rub our
clitellums together. It is our only reproductive
system. We separate and we lay eggs isolated in the
soil. The range of baby worms in the eggs is within one
to five babies. When they emerge from their cocoon, our
babies are transparent and are on their own. Our babies
are ½ a inch long which is about the size of a grain
of rice.
Worm eggs
Worm
Worm part near
clitellum
Vermicomposting
Vermicomposting is the process of having red worms and other
decomposer organisms’s process our organic waste and turn it into a great
natural fertilizer. Vermicomposting is easy; it requires very few supplies and
can be done by anyone. A simple box or container makes a fine worm bin and
keeps worms and decomposing food scraps in one area.
We should vermicompost because it keeps valuable resources out
our of the landfill, it helps us to grow better veggies, and we have fun looking
at tiny critters in the worm bin. We should also vermicompost because it
feels good to recycle nutrients that don’t need to be wasted. Finally, we
should vermicompost to make a few bucks now and then, and selling worms
to new composters.
Vermicomposting (continued)
Many gardeners compost both yard waste and kitchen waste
with compost piles, sheet composting or some other method during the
gardening season. Fortunately very little yard waste is generate during
winter months when cold temperatures make composting difficult.
However, usable kitchen waste is constantly being generated and must
be disposed of. Vermicomposting is the process of using worms and
micro-organisms to turn kitchen waste into black, earthy-smelling
nutrient-rich humus.
Outside of a worm bin
Inside of a worm bin
Life Inside a Wormery
A wormery is a home for worms. It is made
sometimes with clear sides so you can see how they
work.To build a wormery we need a plastic container,
soil, sand, leaves, Water, and about 5 worms.
Inside a wormery they eat the soil while they dig
tunnels. They eat organic food (like tomatoes and
carrots). Worms like to live inside the wormery because
it is like their natural habitat.
Cool Facts about Worms
• The largest earthworm ever found measured 22 feet long! It
was found in South Africa.
• A worm has NO arms, legs or eyes.
• There are approximately 2,700 different kinds of earthworms.
• Earthworms have the ability to replace their lost segments. This
ability depends on the species of worm you have, the amount of
damage to the worm and where it is cut. It may be easy for a
worm to replace a lost tail, but may be very difficult or
impossible to replace a lost head if things are not just right.
Australian Giant Gippsland Earthworm