Also known as leeches, Hirudinea
Leeches are segmented parasitic or predatory worms that comprise the subclass Hirudinea within the phylum Annelida. They are closely related to the oligochaetes, which include the earthworm, and like them have soft, muscular segmented bodies that can lengthen and contract. Both groups are hermaphrodites and have a clitellum, but leeches typically differ from the oligochaetes in having suckers at both ends and ring markings that do not correspond with their internal segmentation. The body is muscular and relatively solid; the coelom, the spacious body cavity found in other annelids, is reduced
Leeches are segmented worms that feed on the blood or body fluids of other animals, featuring distinctive suckers at both ends of their soft, muscular bodies. They matter because they are closely related to earthworms and represent an important group within the broader family of segmented worms, with unique adaptations that distinguish them from their relatives.
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hirudineans
Subclass
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