Earthworm Trends: project under development

Objective

To ensure that earthworms feature more prominently in agricultural, environment and conservation policy and public thinking.

Assessment of need

Earthworms have been particularly neglected within the invertebrate conservation agenda, they are very much out of sight, out of mind, the result being that earthworm populations in arable fields are now considerably depleted. This coupled with the fact that it is estimated that earthworms produce £16 billion worth of topsoil each year, means that it is essential that existing earthworm data be collected, collated and evaluated.To date there has been no systematic attempt to bring earthworm data together. Such a collection, drawing upon information stretching back for a century or more will be of great value for the drafting of preliminary distribution maps for British earthworm species, and to allow current comparisons through re-sampling of the same sites. This work will also determine if management practices and/or climate change could be factored into any observed soil faunal community changes. Extrapolation of the data obtained would help to inform current environmental thinking.

Earthworm © Roger Key

Aims

• To collect and collate the scientific literature and information relating to earthworm distribution, abundance and community structure. The project will focus on a keystone species such as Lumbricus terrestris L.
• To identify a specified number of habitats in given areas for re-examination.
• Sites to be determined by soil type, land management, altitude, current access and position in the British Isles to ensure that a wide range of habitats are sampled.
• To take samples from the identified sites – due to problems such as annual precipitation each site will need to be sampled more than once and a return will be required within 12 months.
• To draft a comparison of earthworm populations, communities and habitats over time.