2007-02-07 09:31:30 · 0 answers · asked by basketball25 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Zoology
Certainly. Just not as fast as you and I.
Worms breathe through their skin, and have lots of capillaries circulating blood near the surface to do this. Being small, they don't usually have immense air requirements either. So usually in the top parts of the soil where they live there's enough air for them to get by.
Depending on the content of the water, there may also be plenty of oxygen for them to get by as well. The interface in a worm's skin can extract oxygen from fluid about as well as the air. So if there's enough oxygen in the water (as there usually is in rain water) it's no obstacle at all. In fact, worms have been observed to survive in water-saturated soil for MONTHS.
Worms do not, in fact, come to the surface when it rains because they are at risk of drowning. That (as mentioned in the previous paragraph) is not a risk at all. On the other hand, they may come to the surface during rain because they need to stay moist and don't like sunlight, and a rainstorm is the only time the surface fits those conditions. There may very well be other reasons too. (link 2)
2007-02-07 09:35:35 · answer #1 · answered by Doctor Why 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
yes worms can drown. no they dont have lungs. Thats why when its rains, they come out of thier holes in the ground and thats why they are all over the place when it rains. staying under water for a long time, is a bad thing for worms. lack of oxygen you see.
2007-02-08 12:49:26 · answer #2 · answered by Kayleigh B 1 · 2⤊ 4⤋
Yes.
To be accurate, they will die if immersed in water for a long time. They don't have lungs, so don't drown the same way as we do, but it is still linked to oxygen starvation..
2007-02-07 09:35:00 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 1⤋
they get oxygen through their skin and can live quite awhile underwater but not forever - so yes
( people don't fish in your area i assume or you would know that they still wiggle till they have been submerged 15-30 minutes lol )
2007-02-07 09:35:23 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
yes they can, since they bretthe air like we do. This is why after a rainstorm, you will see worms all over the sidewalks and grass
2007-02-07 09:35:06 · answer #5 · answered by Mike G 3 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Yes, if you're talking about earthworms/night
crawlers. They breath air. Just look in mudpuddles
in your yard in the spring when it rains.
2007-02-07 09:36:42 · answer #6 · answered by cheyenneman 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋