Earthworm Habits and Habitats

Food Habit and Habitat

• Earthworms eat various organic matter, including decaying roots, leaves, animal manure, and other organic material.
• They also consume living organisms like nematodes, protozoans, rotifers, bacteria, and fungi.
• Earthworms live in moist, compost-rich soil.
• Different earthworm types have diverse feeding niches and habitats.
• Anecic earthworms live in permanent burrows up to 3 meters deep, collecting food from the soil surface.
• Composting earthworms consume decaying plant matter and manure near the start of decomposition.
• Epigeic earthworms live in leaf litter and rotting logs, consuming partially decayed organic matter.
• Earthworms are often called "farmer's friends" due to their burrowing, which aerates soil and increases fertility.

Ecological Requirements

• Earthworms need specific conditions to survive, including moisture, temperature, pH, and organic matter.
• They thrive in moist soil (50-60%), rich in compost.
• Optimal temperature for composting earthworms is 55-80°F.
• Earthworms can tolerate a pH range of 5-8, but a neutral pH is ideal.
• They consume a wide variety of organic matter, including detritus, living protozoa, rotifers, nematodes, bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms.
• Soil texture significantly impacts earthworm populations.
• Soil depth is not a significant predictor of earthworm richness and density.
• Precipitation is an indicator of endogeic earthworm density.
• Soil bulk density and porosity influence endogeic earthworm density and richness.
• Earthworms are considered ecosystem engineers because of their significant material ingestion and soil modification.

Ecological Categories of Earthworms

• French scientist Marcel Bouché defined ecological earthworm categories in the 1970s.
• These categories were based on physical characteristics (pigmentation, body length, color).
• Deep-burrowing earthworms (Anecic) create permanent vertical burrows in soil.
• They feed on surface leaves, dragging them into their burrows.