Most of us who live in North America were raised to recollect of earthworms as beneficial garden allies . We were taught that these wriggly weirdos were invaluable for healthy stain , and as food resource for hungry snort .
The general theme was that if you dug into the grunge and found a handful of these worm , then said soil was super sizeable . Furthermore , you could also use these wrigglers as fishing sweetener !
Imagine how surprising it is to find out that common earthworms are invasive in North America . moreover , they are n’t just invasive : they ’re actually quite harmful to our local ecosystems . This is because the same traits that make them big for our garden wreak havoc on wood systems .
How Do Invasive Earthworms Harm Local Ecosystems?
Gardeners , botanist , and biologist are very intimate with earthworms ’ use in filth wellness . These worms break up the soil as they wrestle through it , thus air out it and turn nutrients from it .
Water then go through the soil more easily , carrying nutrients through the earthly concern , and up into the plants growing there .
Now , the problem is that native North American plant species evolved over millennia to conform specifically to their local environments . woodland plants in especial memorize how to get nutrient from the soil as efficiently as potential . Invasive earthworms muckle with all that .
“Mor” vs “Mull” Soils
If you ’ve ever taken a manner of walking in a forest , you ’ve note that the forest floor is covered in rubble . This organic matter consist of fall leafage , slightly broken - down leaf mould , fallen conifer needle , dead insects , and fungi . The territory in a forest is known as “ Mor ” soil , and consists of this detritus laying atop downhearted , mineral - rich grease , rather than being mix with it .
Now , when fishing worm are insert to these soils , they shift them drastically . Within just a few geezerhood of being acquaint , the worms churn these layer together . As such , the“Mor ” soil becomes “ Mull”instead .
The layers are immix together more homogenously , which wreak havoc on indigenous plant ’ health . Basically , the plants that have evolved to thrive in the various layers now do n’t make out what to do with themselves .
All Effects Ripple Outwards
Invasive plant life specie root more shallowly than native mintage , which needed to adapt to draw mineral from depressed grunge layers . As such , these encroaching species cease up thriving whilst indigenous mintage miss out on nutrients . [ 1 ]
It ’s not just plants that overlook out on these nutrients , either . Remember that nothing in nature subsist in a vacuity , and this nutritive redistribution affects soil microbes and insect wellness as well . In fact , the altered soil biota can also damage mycorrhizal wellness , which in turn will affect all the other life sentence nearby .
In fact , every variety spirals outwards and affects other species . For model , the aboriginal plant that are n’t flourish as well wo n’t be capable to nutrify the pollinating species that evolve to flow on them .
In bout , those insect species wo n’t be as plentiful for local or migrant birds , nor small mammals . As you could imagine , the predators that feed on these birds and little mammal ( for example hawks , owls , slyboots , and such ) see their food source diminish as well .
Over time , what had antecedently been a flourish wood full of mutualist species becomes unbalanced . incursive species flourish while aboriginal ones die off , and may never recover in that surface area again .
Where Did These Earthworms Come From?
Three of the most common invasive species , Lumbricus terrestris , Octolasion tyrtaeum SavignyandDendrobaena octaedra Savigny , were introduce to North America in the seventeenth century . [ 2 ]
scientist assume that these worms hitched drive to this continent in produce root bulbs . They ( and their eggs ) belike stow away inside Brassica oleracea , onion , and other solid food plant that European immigrants brought to the new globe .
Then they went on their mirthful way once enter into the soil , drop offspring as they worm ahead . These worms do n’t require mate in decree to multiply , so there was nothing hindering their procreation .
look at how many earthworms subsist on this continent now , you could see how prolific they ’ve been !
Can We Take any Steps to Reduce Their Populations?
These worms are widespread and prolific , as refer . As such , it would be very unmanageable for us to importantly reduce their numbers . That say , there are some action we can take to slenderize their population on our own holding .
Oust Them with a Mustard Vermifuge
select a solar day when the atmospheric condition is quite lovely , and the soil is already damp . For example , on a tender summertime dayspring or eve after a rainstorm . Then dissolve 1/3 cup of fine-grained ironic leaf mustard in a gallon of H2O , and drench an sphere of soil with it .
There ’s anorganosulfurcompound in leaf mustard calledallyl isothiocyanate , which is what gives mustard its slight electrocution gist . This constituent is also present in radishes , wasabi , and horseradish .
It irritates the dirt ball ’ cutis as it seeps into the soil , and they ’ll attempt to crawl aside from the glow sensation . This drives them up and out of the ground , at which full stop you’re able to grab them and toss them in a bucket .
From there , it ’s up to you whether you want to relocate them , wipe out them off , or use them for another use . For illustration :
Feed Them to Wild Animals
You ’ve likely mark that you make for a plenty of worms to the surface when you till your soil . Every metre you sour that soil over , hundreds of worms — and their eggs — get display . Local animals have learned to recognize this smorgasbord and congregate every clock time we till . Then flocks of all metal money descend to devour the worms before they can vanish again .
you may team up with your local wildlife to help reduce earthworm population . garner unwrap worms in a bucket as you turn your grunge over . Then spread out them out on a tray near your snort feeders . We also give them ( and various grubs and punch ) to our racoon Friend to munch on .
If you ’ve used the mustard pour ( aka “ mustard greens drench ” ) as mentioned above , you ’ll demand to wash off the fishing worm before feeding them to any brute . While the mustard wo n’t smart birds or mammal , it ’s not an likable flavor to them .
In fact , most of them will annul it . As such , rinse the worms off thoroughly with a hosepipe to get the lingering mustard greens powder off . Then give your wild Friend the worm buffet they ’ve always stargaze of .
Let Your Poultry or Fowl Eat Them
If you have chickens , Guinea domestic fowl , ducks , quail , or other domesticated / game birds , you ’re in lot . Earthworms make tasty , nutritious treats for all of these coinage . As such , permit your birds run raving mad in the garden after you ’ve tilled so they can gorge themselves .
Alternatively , you’re able to also offer them a dirt ball and grub snack counter similar to the wild bird snack dining table bring up above . Just wash off the mustard as above if you ’ve done a drench to string them out .
Use Them as Fishing Bait
Do you live nigh to a river , lake , or sea ? Then hollow up some of these earthworms and apply them asfishing bait . sea fish such as pod , halibut , mackerel , and flounder lie with these worms . So do fresh water species like bass , catfish , trout , yellow rod , and Lepomis macrochirus .
Although using dirt ball as fish come-on wo n’t drastically reduce populations of nightwalker , every small fleck helps .
Reduce the Spread
Avoid moving grime from one area of your attribute to another , specially if you live closely to a woodland . If you do survive near the Mrs. Henry Wood , apply those leaf mustard drenches around the edges of your property . This will discourage the dirt ball from moving in that direction .
Additionally , if and when you purchase compost or mulch from a garden center field , ensure that it ’s been heat - treated . This treatment sterilizes the cognitive content so you wo n’t circulate grunge - borne pathogen . As an add bonus , the heat also wipe out off nightcrawler and their egg so they ca n’t set up themselves and spread onward .
It ’s important to distinguish the encroachment that human activity has on ecosystem health and well - being . By being aware of how every action gurgle outward , we can be more persevering about invasive species in the time to come .
We may not be able-bodied to eliminate invading earthworms from North America , but hopefully , we can desist from doing additional damage while we ’re here .
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