Mario Jackson, age 15, of Newport News, Virginia, for  his question:

Does Australia really have a giant earthworm?

After meeting the kangaroos, the koala and the platypus, surely we can believe almost anything about the wild life of Australia. A giant earthworm comes as no surprise    unless we get a good look at him. Then we might mistake him for a ten foot snake and take off with all speed. Yes, the creature really does exist in Australia. And being a true earthworm, he can stretch his wormy body. It is reported that this astonishing creature can stretch his ten feet to at least 12 feet.

Apart from size, the giant resembles our native earthworms. He she is both a male and a female parent, who lives a sheltered life in an earthy burrow. Naturally the giant is not afraid of robin sized birds. But Australia has several whopping birds who forage for food. The bad tempered cassowary stands five feet tall and weighs about 120 pounds. If he happened to spot one of those giant earthworms, he might well feel challenged to a tug of war.