Earthworm - Digestive And Excretory System
Which excretory structures perform osmoregulation and removal of nitrogenous waste in the earthworm by being arranged segmentally along the body?
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About This Question
- Subject
- biology
- Chapter
- structural organisation in animals and plants
- Topic
- earthworm - digestive and excretory system
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Year
- 2025
Solution
Correct Answer:
Nephridia
Excretion in invertebrates is achieved by organ systems suited to each animal's body plan, and NCERT specifies the structures present in Pheretima. The earthworm excretes and osmoregulates using segmentally arranged coiled tubules called nephridia, which occur in most body segments and remove nitrogenous wastes while balancing body fluids; three types, namely septal, integumentary and pharyngeal nephridia, are recognised. Malpighian tubules are the excretory organs of insects such as the cockroach, attached at the junction of midgut and hindgut, so they are not found in earthworms. Flame cells are the protonephridial units of flatworms like Planaria and do not occur in annelids. Green glands, also called antennal glands, are excretory organs of crustaceans such as prawns, again outside the earthworm body plan. As stated in NCERT Class 11, Chapter 7 (Structural Organisation in Animals), nephridia are the excretory organs of the earthworm. A comparative check confirms that among the listed options only nephridia match the segmental annelid arrangement described in the question.
This medium difficulty biology question is from the chapter structural organisation in animals and plants, covering the topic of earthworm - digestive and excretory system. It appeared in the 2025 exam.
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