Follow a burrowing earthworm seeking soil's moisture to protect its oxygen-collecting skin
Cross-section view of an earthworm (Lumbricus) burrowing beneath the soil's surface
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.
-
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.How do we get from wheat, water, and sugar to happy hour?
-
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.Is it just me, or did spring come early this year?
-
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.The monster flower and the titan arum have been said to smell like rotting flesh.Media Editor: Lauren Sims
-
© Open University (A Britannica Publishing Partner)Some spiders seem to “gallop” across the surface of water.
-
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.Gophers use long, strong foreclaws and large front teeth to dig burrows. They feed on the underground parts of plants.
-
© Open University (A Britannica Publishing Partner)Tour San Salvador (Santiago) Island, in the Galapagos Islands, where Charles Darwin studied wildlife in 1835.
-
Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.A jellyfish contracting its body.
Transcript
NARRATOR: Earthworms take in oxygen through their skin, which must always remain moist. To maintain their skin moisture, earthworms live in burrows beneath the surface of the soil.
Endangered by too much light, they remain in their burrows during the day, emerging only at night or during periods of heavy rain.
Endangered by too much light, they remain in their burrows during the day, emerging only at night or during periods of heavy rain.