Worm Watch Lab Talk

Worms prefer worm trails?

  • Kitharode by Kitharode

    I get the impression that the worms avoid smooth 'desert' regions and, in general, try to find and follow ready made worm trails. There are many instances to support this impression and I wonder if anyone else sees the same thing?

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  • Kitharode by Kitharode

    Hahaha. As if to prove the point above, my very next worm http://www.wormwatchlab.org/subjects/51b6d9552d5d3ad242002000.mp4

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  • Matty-Gee by Matty-Gee

    I've seen some nematodes bury their anterior into the slime piles for 10-15 seconds. I want to know more about those trails.

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  • Matty-Gee by Matty-Gee

    A science team member has already gotten back to me on one of my earlier posts. Apparently these are trails made in the food layer of the plates. I assume this means that they are snaking along already made grooves since it is easier for them like biking in another bikers draft I guess.

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  • Kitharode by Kitharode

    I'd guessed there was some sort of 'gunk' layer that the worm was moving through to make the trails, but it's good to have that confirmed. And it's also a food layer which is nice for the worm. 😉

    Ease of movement seems a logical explanation, but when food is all around you why bother to move at all? Yes I know, it's what worms do!! Perhaps they like to feel something solid underneath them rather than something slushy. Visually, the anterior seems to me to be used as an 'anchor', or a 'place detector', which allows the worm to accurately backtrack if it wants to.

    I might just be seeing things of course....

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  • aexbrown by aexbrown scientist

    It's a good question. Part of the answer is that this actually isn't the highest quality food for the worm. If you put them on some different strains of bacteria, they can become satiated and stop moving.

    This is quite technical, but the WormBook chapter on feeding might be of interest:
    http://www.wormbook.org/chapters/www_feeding/feeding.html

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  • aexbrown by aexbrown scientist in response to Matty-Gee's comment.

    "I've seen some nematodes bury their anterior into the slime piles for 10-15 seconds. I want to know more about those trails."

    They will sometimes bury their head and some strains will actually burrow into the agar that they're crawling on, but the lab strain that we usually study doesn't do this very much.

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  • aexbrown by aexbrown scientist in response to Kitharode's comment.

    You're right, that's a very real phenomenon. Worms don't like to leave the food lawn. It's not because it's easier to crawl there, it's actually because they can smell (and feel!) their food. They can tell when they're going into an area without food so they turn around.

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  • Kitharode by Kitharode in response to aexbrown's comment.

    Many thanks for your replies and the link. "Quite technical" is putting it mildly, but I get the overall gist of the WormBook chapter and I've learnt a great deal about these little critters. I'm pleased that my observation is of a real phenomenon. There's nothing like 'discovering' something for yourself. 😉

    I'm usually on Planet Four studying Mars, but I'm gonna spend some time here too methinks. Love the interface, repeat video, delete markers. Good stuff all round - Well done.

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