BIOL2001A

Animals: Form and

Function

Annelids
Today’s learning objectives
By the end of today’s class, you will be able to:

• Describe the anatomy and development of annelids

and identify polychaete and oligochaete body plans
• Compare and contrast the ways different annelids
move in their environment.
• Describe the circulatory and excretory systems of
annelids and distinguish them from those of
flatworms.
 Phylum Annelida
Class Errantia Class Sedentaria
• Sedentary tube or burrow dwelling worms
• Free-living worms with a with Polychaete body plan.
Polychaete body plan.
• Also: Free living, segmented worms with
an Oligochaete body plan (e.g.
earthworms, leeches).

*A polychaete could be Errantia or Sedentaria, an Oligochaete must be Sedentaria*

Annelid body plans

Body plan
Polychaete Oligochaete
“Bristleworms” Earthworms Leeches

Lateral Yes (parapodia) Absent Absent

appendages

Setae Present Present Absent

Suckers Absent Absent Oral and posterior

Annelid development and form
Adult form
Mouth Prostomium

Peristomium
Trochophore larva (location of mouth)

Episphere

Trunk
(metameres)
Mouth

pygidium
Anus
(location of anus)
Annelid development and
form Trochophore larva Adult form

Segments added at
teloblastic growth zone.

Oldest segment just behind

peristomium.

Youngest segment
just in front of
pygidium.

Teloblastic
growth zone
Annelid body plans
Metamerism: body divided into a longitudinal series of segments

Oligochaete Body Plan Polychaete Body Plan

Everted pharynx with jaws
pygidium
Prostomium

Peristomium

Peripodium

Clitellum
Segment
(metamere)

Well developed
Peritoneal
musculature
septa
Annelid form and
development
Cuticle, with pores for mucus secretion
Dorsal
Epidermis, epithelial, mucous gland,
sensory, and photoreceptor cells

Circular muscles
(metamere elongation)

Longitudinal muscles
(metamere shortening)

Gut
Ventral
Coelom
(containing coelomic fluid)
Annelid cuticle Cuticle

Epidermis
• Body covered by an external cuticle,
which does not molt.
• Cuticle does not contain cells – An
extracellular matrix secreted by the
epidermis.

• Contains large amounts of long, extensible

collagen fibers.
Collagen
fibers pore

Alternating
helical layers -
Able to stretch
and contract.
Earthworm locomotion (Sedentaria, Oligochaete)
• Hydrostatic skeleton: Volume of coelomic fluid inside each segment is
constant – because of septa.
• Compression in one axis causes other axis to stretch (become longer or
wider).
• Waves of peristaltic contraction are used for movement.

Cuticle
Dorsal
Epidermis

Circular muscles
(metamere elongation)

Longitudinal muscles
(metamere shortening) Coelomic fluid

Ventral
Earthworm locomotion (Sedentaria, Oligochaete)
waves of peristaltic contraction and setae

If circular muscles contract…

Coelomic fluid

1 2
…metameres elongate with diameter decreasing.

Septa
Body wall muscles
Earthworm locomotion (Sedentaria, Oligochaete)

If longitudinal muscles contract…

Coelomic fluid

1 2 …metameres shorten and increase in diameter.

Septa
Body wall muscles
 Activity
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Texxu3p7I8
When I stop the video:
1) Draw the worm as it appears on the screen.
2) Label where the circular muscles are contracting.
3) Label where the longitudinal muscles are contracting.
4) Label the direction of the peristaltic wave
Oligochaete setae
Not to be confused with septae!

• Four pairs on each segment.

• Project outward through pores in cuticle.
• Aid anchoring - Friction with surface or digging into walls of
burrow.

Did you discuss a molluscan

structure in your last class
that also had protractor and
retractor muscles?
Leeches (Oligochaete body plan)
• Mainly freshwater environments, some terrestrial.
• Most are parasites of vertebrates.
• Secrete an anticoagulant in their saliva.

• Gut specialized for storage and digestion of large

quantities of blood.

• Highly modified annelids.

• No parapodia, no septa (secondary loss).
World’s largest leech
• Coelom largely filled with connective tissue (reduced
hydrostatic skeleton).

A terrestrial leech
Oligochaete locomotion (Leeches)
Leech crawling – Use of musculature and suckers
dorsal
anterior posterior
ventral

- Anterior sucker detachment

- Contraction of circular muscles
- body lengthens

- Anterior sucker attachment

- Circular muscles relax, posterior sucker

detachment

- Longitudinal muscles contract

- Dorsal Longitudinal muscles relax

- Ventral Longitudinal muscles contract
- Posterior sucker attaches
Polychaete locomotion (Tube worms)

waves of peristaltic contraction

• Setae grip sides of tube.
• Peristaltic movements irrigates the
tube.
• Rapid contraction retracts worm into
tube.
Giant tubeworms of hydrothermal vents
Habitat near vents
• Fluid expelled is ~ 350°C
• Full of toxins (hydrogen sulfide
H2S)
• Low oxygen (hypoxia) and
complete darkness

Giant Tubeworms How do they eat?!

• 1 to 2 meters long
• No gut, mouth or anus
• Plume (gill) collects H2S
and CO2
• Symbiotic bacteria convert
them into sugar for the
tubeworm
Polychaete body plan: Parapodia

Dorsolateral longitudinal Coelom

muscles

Parapodia

Circular muscles

ventrolateral longitudinal muscles

Parapodial muscles
 Polychaete locomotion
1. slow crawling
• Mainly driven by parapodia (parapodial muscles).

effective stroke recovery stroke

direction of
worm
movement Ant.

direction of direction of
parapodia parapodia
movement Post. movement
Polychaete locomotion
Longitudinal muscles
stretched Longitudinal muscles contracted

Effective parapodial
Speed of worm increases as stroke on crest of wave
number of segments involved
increases

2. Fast crawling
• Parapodia and body muscles used together.
• Lateral undulations produced by waves of muscle contraction.
Polychaete locomotion
3. Swimming
• Mechanically similar to fast crawling - Parapodia and body
muscles used together.
• Each wave involves more segments.
Annelid circulatory system
Coelomic fluid

• Most annelids have a closed

“Heart”
circulatory system.
• Dorsal aorta – Moves blood
anteriorly
Blood
Capillaries – Dorsal vessel is contractile,
like a heart.

• Ventral aorta – Moves blood

posteriorly
• Segmental vessels lead to
capillary beds in gut and body
wall.
• Respiratory pigments in blood
Accessory “hearts” called plasma carry oxygen.
circumoesophageal vessels
help propel blood.
Annelid circulatory system
• Polychaete parapodia are heavily vascularized (contain lots blood vessels).
• Parapodia are used for gas exchange (oxygen collected from water through
the epidermis and circulated by respiratory pigments (e.g. hemoglobin).

Why is the
gut so
vascularized?
Annelid osmoregulation
• Nephridia: Organs of excretion.

• A ciliated funnel, the

nephrostome, draws in
coelomic fluid

• Water, ions and wastes are

exchanged with blood.
• Selective reabsorption of
useful metabolites/ions.

• Nephridium ends at a
bladder that empties
outside by a nephridiopore
(where did we discuss this
term before?).
Next class: Midterm 1!

Good luck!