What is Tapeworm?
[[File:Kopf bewaffneter Bandwurm-drawing.jpg|thumb|right|Head of a pork tapeworm. Left image is magnified 30 times, right one is magnified about 55 times.]] '''Tapeworms''' are the [[Class (biology)|class]] '''Cestoda''' of [[segmented]] [[flatworm]]s (Platyhelminthes).They are [[parasite|parasitic]], which means that they need another larger creature as a [[wikt:host|host]]. Tapeworms live inside the [[intestine]]s of [[vertebrate]] animals. This includes [[human]]s. When a vertebrate has a tapeworm, they may lose weight and become weaker. Tapeworms can be up to 30 or 36&nbsp;feet (10–12&nbsp;metres) long. They eat by absorbing material directly through their [[epidermis]] (outside layer). The head of a tapeworm has four [[sucker]]s and two rings of [[hook]]s. The body of a tapeworm is in segments (pieces that are like each other). Each segment can produce [[Egg (biology)|eggs]]. Little segments of the tapeworm sometimes break off and pass out through the [[feces|stool]] of the host, with the eggs. Little segments of its body fall off. They go out of the host body, and are eaten by the next host, which is another type of vertebrate. Tapeworms are [[hermaphrodite]], with both sexes. Cross-[[fertilization]] occurs between two tapeworms in the same intestine. They have a [[life cycle]] with a secondary or [[intermediate host]]. For example, human tapeworms have cows or pigs as intermediate hosts. The 'definitive' host (humans in this case) is the one where fertilization takes place. Tapeworms don't have a gut, so they have to absorb nutrients directly across their skin. <gallery> File:Taenia solium tapeworm scolex with its four suckers and two rows of hooks 5262 lores.jpg|Tapeworm with four suckers and two rows of hooks </gallery> {{commonscat|Cestoda}} {{biology-stub}} [[Category:Flatworms]] [[Category:Parasites]]