Balanoglossus is a "ciliary feeder".Its food comprises microscopic organism and organic particles present in water and the bottam sand in which it makes its burrows.The lateral cilia lining the gill-slits set up a current of water which enters through the mouth,takes its course through the boccal cavity,pharynx,gill-slits and branchial sacs, and leaves through the gill pores. This is the respiratory-cum-food current.The u-shaped pre-oral ciliary organ, at the base of proboscis staiks,tests the quality of food and water entering the mouth.In pharynx, the food moves through the ventral digestive portion.The exact process of digestion in Balanoglossus is not know.Undigested substances, along with sand and slits, pass out through the anus as"castings".
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