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The earthworm life cycle, like many others, starts with an egg. Within the egg, a young earthworm develops until it is ready to hatch. The egg is encased in an egg casing called a cocoon. The number of eggs within one cocoon can vary between species, ranging between 1 and 20 from earthworm species in the family Lumbricidae (but most species ...
From the time it emerges from its cocoon to the day it dies, an earthworm's life expectancy can vary widely, depending on the species. The night crawler has an average life span between six to nine years and has been reported to live up to 20 [source: Backman]. Red worms typically live between two and five years [source: Wormman.com].
Earthworms are classified into three main ecophysiological categories: (1) leaf litter- or compost-dwelling worms that are nonburrowing, live at the soil-litter interface and eat decomposing organic matter e.g. Eisenia fetida; (2) topsoil- or subsoil-dwelling worms that feed (on soil), burrow and cast within the soil, creating horizontal burrows in upper 10–30 cm of soil ; and (3) worms that ...
Earthworms do not live in deserts or regions where there is permafrost or permanent snow and ice. Typically only a few inches (7 or 8 centimeters) long, some members of this species have been known to grow to a snakelike 14 inches (35 centimeters). Earthworms' bodies are made up of ringlike segments called annuli.
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- Earthworms come in a seemly infinite variety—around 6,000 species worldwide. One of the most familiar of them, the sort you may see in your garden, is commonly known as the night crawler (it typically surfaces after dark), the angleworm (its makes popular bait for fishing) or the rain worm (it leaves waterlogged soil after storms).
- Of the more than 180 earthworm species found in the United States and Canada, 60 are invasive species, brought over from the Old World, including the night crawler.
- Lacking lungs or other specialized respiratory organs, earthworms breathe through their skin.
- The skin exudes a lubricating fluid that makes moving through underground burrows easier and helps keep skin moist. One Australian species can shoot fluid as far as 12 inches through skin pores.
Earthworms are a source of food for numerous animals, like birds, rats, and toads, and are frequently used in residential composting and as bait in commercial and recreational fishing. Their ...
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Decomposition and soil organic matter. Earthworms play an important role in breaking down dead organic matter in a process known as decomposition. This is what the earthworms living in your compost bin are doing and earthworms living in soils also decompose organic matter. Decomposition releases nutrients locked up in dead plants and animals ...
