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Earthworm head. Depending on the species, an adult earthworm can be from 10 mm (0.39 in) long and 1 mm (0.039 in) wide to 3 m (9.8 ft) long and over 25 mm (0.98 in) wide, but the typical Lumbricus terrestris grows to about 360 mm (14 in) long. [9]
Amynthas species can be differentiated from other earthworms by their clitellum, which is pale, annular, is close to the head, and lies flat against the body. [ 3 ] [ 8 ] They vary in size between 3.8 and 20.3 cm (1.5 and 8.0 in).
Familiar worms include the earthworms, members of phylum Annelida. Other invertebrate groups may be called worms, especially colloquially. In particular, many unrelated insect larvae are called "worms", such as the railroad worm, woodworm, glowworm, bloodworm, butterworm, inchworm, mealworm, silkworm, and woolly bear worm.
Gippsland earthworm colonies are small and isolated, [9] and the species' low reproductive rates and slow maturation make those small populations vulnerable. [9] Their natural habitats are grasslands, and while they can survive beneath pastures, [9] cultivation, heavy cattle grazing and effluent run-off are adversarial to the species. [9]
However, 'earthworm' can be a source of confusion since, in most of the world, other species are more typical. For example, through much of the unirrigated temperate areas of the world, the "common earthworm" is actually Aporrectodea (=Allolobophora) trapezoides, which in those areas is a similar size and dark colour to L. terrestris.
Earthworms store their partners' sperm in spermathecae ("sperm stores") and then the clitellum produces a cocoon that collects ova from the ovaries and then sperm from the spermathecae. Fertilization and development of earthworm eggs takes place in the cocoon. Leeches' eggs are fertilized in the ovaries, and then transferred to the cocoon.
The worms require loose soil to burrow in and soil moist enough for gas exchange. [3] Further requirements include such abiotic factors as pH and temperature. Various abiotic factors are significant to Lumbricus rubellus . pH is of particular importance; a range of 5.5 to 8.7 is acceptable with a preference for neutral soils. [ 4 ]
The Lumbricidae are a family of earthworms.About 33 lumbricid species have become naturalized around the world, [1] but the bulk of the species are in the Holarctic region: from Canada (e.g. Bimastos lawrenceae on Vancouver Island) and the United States (e.g. Eisenoides carolinensis, Eisenoides lonnbergi and most Bimastos spp.) and throughout Eurasia to Japan (e.g. Eisenia japonica, E. koreana ...