Getting down and dirty with the Earthworm Society of Britain

I attended the Earthworm Society of Britain‘s annual general meeting at Cannock Chase Forest where I got to meet fantastic amateur enthusiasts, very knowledgable naturalists with a general interest in worms, and some hardcore earthworm specialists. It was an immensely enjoyable couple of days of field recording in various habitats found here including broadleaved woodland, grassland and heath as well as microhabitats such as dead wood.

“It may be doubted whether there are many other animals which have played so important a part in the history of the world, as have these lowly organised creatures”. Charles Darwin

Since Darwin’s observations and experiments with earthworms was first published in 1881 under the title The Formation of Vegetable Mould, Through the Action of Worms, With Observations on Their Habits a new area of little-known research relating to these fascinating creatures was born. Despite this, we still find a lamentable lack of data regarding the distribution of earthworms throughout the UK and are continuing to research the ecosystem-wide implications of their below-ground activity.

In attending the society’s field day and AGM I was curious to find whether earthworms would pique my interest as a naturalist and scientist or whether I had developed a nostalgic yearning for simpler times. I have vivid memories of when, as a child, I would gingerly lift the edge of the damp burlap sack to scoop out trowel-fulls of fusty earth from half an oil drum in which my grandfather bred earthworms to bait his fishing hooks. I think the answer is that they are probably both true. This area is rich for contributions to research and recording while also being a great opportunity to get my hands stuck in some dirt and forget about my everyday worries. And when Amy Stewart so eloquently points out in response to the relevance of Darwin’s research and the significance of earthworms, that they’re “…only carrying out the natural order of things, folding the ruins of a farm, a city, or a society into the lower strata of the earth. When our civilizations end, and when we as individuals die, we don’t ascend, not physically. We descend. And the earth rises up to meet us”, how could I resist?

Day 1

Looking for earthworms is a messy affair and you have got to be prepared to get dirty. Armed with spades, sorting trays and all-weather gear we set out to see what the various sites had to offer.

We started with the damp, waterlogged woodland near  the classroom we had booked for the day and were immediately set upon by midges and mosquitoes. Ankle-deep in mud, and stippled with insect bites we dug 5 soil pits here with a reasonable haul of worms before making a break for an area of bracken further up the slope and farther away from the biting flies. We didn’t find any earthworms in the bracken pits, but were entertained by a greater spotted woodpecker feeding her voracious and loudly calling young in a nearby nesting hole before we again set off to a new site. A stop on the way to explore the banks of a stream and some adjacent dead wood in varying states of decay provided a few more worms for our count as well as other obligatory detritivores – millipedes, centipedes and woodlice.

It was in the pits dug from the grass verge alongside a footpath with flowering speedwell and buttercups  where the highest number of earthworms were found, along with leatherjackets and other unidentified fly and beetle larvae. Our small party of slightly bedraggled and filthy earthworm explorers then headed back to the Forestry Commission classroom. Looking to all the world like a group of unsuccessful treasure hunters or end-of-shift gravediggers we traipsed back to the promise of piping hot tea and freshly made sandwiches while a retinue of dog walkers, mountain bikers and Segway riders passed us by.  After lunch we could be found sitting in drifts of leaf litter in an old disused drainage ditch beneath a small stand of beech trees opposite the car park where we turned up a few more worms.

Then on to the AGM. First we were treated to a fascinating presentation on the worldwide diversity of earthworms (look out for the fried egg worm when in the Philippines) and an update on the ongoing search for the world’s longest earthworm (currently hotly contested between researchers in the Amazon and another in South Africa) by the society’s chair. Thereafter, the recording officer presented an assessment of the state of earthworm recording in the UK compared to other ‘more charismatic’ species such as butterflies – I think it’s fair to say that we have some way to go yet, but that significant progress has been made since the establishment of the society.  New members were elected to the committee (I am delighted to have been accepted as the new treasurer) and all matters were concluded and followed by dinner and drinks in a local pub.

Day 2

The next morning started with a sighting of a pair of Little Ringed Plovers on a derelict brownfield site near the hotel where we were staying before we bundled into cars and headed back to Cannock Chase with the intention of doing some mustard sampling,  digging soil pits in the heath and surveying areas that were being grazed by cattle. We set off on foot from the car park along the road until we reached a small wooded area with birch trees and much dead wood where we started collecting worms accompanied by the call of a cuckoo.

And then on to the next site where the shallow, stony and root-filled heathland pits that we eventually managed to dig were predictably uninhabited by earthworms; but we did manage to extract some from beneath some carpet tiles that had been scattered on a grassy area nearby using the diluted mustard concoction below (which I’ve been told is as indispensable as a spade to earthworm recorders).

A little further down the path a rather large felled tree was rolled away to reveal more worms and a host of other creatures including a palmate newt, a toad,  an unidentified moth larva, pill millipedes, centipedes and  carabid beetles. We were also treated to a view of a tree pipit calling from the top of an oak and the slightly stumbling flight of a scorpion fly. We then made our way on to the grazed area where we wanted to do our final sampling for the day. Or we would have, but as we walked past the cinnabar moths and the many humped yellow meadow ant nests we realised that we may have misjudged the distance somewhat, so picked up the pace but didn’t get there with enough time to do any sampling. As a consolation we did spy a green tiger beetle scuttle across the chalk path as we now hastened back to the car park for a final catch up before scrubbing our hands clean and going our separate ways.

More information

You may have noticed that for a blog post on earthworms, this has been fairly light on any detailed earthworm records. This is because we don’t yet have our full set of records from those who attended the field days, and for my part as I am still a complete novice I am still working my way through the ID process. For ID resources, there is an excellent key by Emma Sherlock and an online  multi-access key developed by Richard Burkmar, both of which I highly recommend.