Leeches

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Leeches

The leech is a segmented worm that in all actuallity has a very vivid

life. From being used by doctors to just being blood-sucking parasites, the

leech is a true wonder of the mind.

The leech has a series of ring-like segments that make up its body

structure. They maybe from 2 to 20 centimeters long and have the ability to

shorten or lengthen their bodies. They mostly come in colors of black, red

or brown, sometimes with stripes or spots. They are extremely sensitive to

touch, temperatue, and drying out. Also, they have clusters of cells on the

front end thatare light-sensative, almost like eyes. Leeches usually live in

dark, damp areas such as the bottoms of lakes, jungels, or shallow streams.

Finally, the leech is a Hermaphrodit, containing bot male and female sexual

reproductive organs.

With a sucker at both ends of it's body, the leech usually lives as a

parasite, feeding upon the blood and tissue of other animals, or on decaying

plant and animal materials. It has a mouth centered on the front sucker with

teeth in some cases. Leeches, that are parasites, attach to their victim with the

front sucker, create a wound, then suck out blood with, usually, both suckers.

Blood-sucking leeches give out a liquid substance called Hirudin. This

chemical prevents the blood from thickening and enables the blood to be

easily sucked by the leech.

Doctors once used leeches, or what they called medicinal leeches, to

remove blood from patients in an orderly manner. The first clinical use of

leeches in this fashion occured approximatly 2,500 years ago. Since the

leeches bite produces a small cleeding wound ,that mimics a venous

circulation in an area of compromised tissue, the leech is particlarly valuable

for reconstruction surgery. Special properties of the bite, such as the

chemical hirudin, allow continued bleeding for up to 48 hours after the leech

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