Show ear earthworms ahw orma are fond of J meat eat sugar readily I 1 according to W R walton senior entomologist united states department of agriculture earthworms feed partly on the soil they swallow great quantities of earth from which they digest organic matter both and vegetable their digestive apparatus is equipped with a gizzard like organ by the aid of which they are able to grind up the toti tougher gher fragments of food they are fond of either cither raw or cooked meat and will eat sugar suga r readily the mouth of the earthworm is devoid of teeth or other biting or gnawing apparatus and consists of a simple sucking or grasping mechanism which is well supplied with powerful muscles when an earthworm wishes to grasp any small object such as a blade of grass it thrust from its mouth an appendage which corresponds roughly to the tongue of a human being this is used to oppose the snout of the worm just as one presses his thumb against his index finger enabling it to grasp firmly any slender object by use of this apparatus the earthworm is enabled to draw leaves or other objects into its burrows fresh leaves are frequently taken into the burrow and the worm then moistens moi the innermost ends of them with a secretion from its mouth which starts fermentation and soon renders the leaves sufficiently tender to enable it to tear off fragments for its food earthworms crawl by means of 0 alternate contraction and expansion of the muscular rings forming their bodies in these movements they are helped by rows of very short stiff bristles placed along the sides of the body they have no eyes but are sensitive to light they have no ears but are sensitive to air currents and especially to the slightest vibration of the ground their eggs are placed in capsules surrounded by a gelatinous food crows find these capsules a great delicacy not much is known about liow how and when the eggs hatch but the young grow into adults in about three months |