Eisenia andrei is a close relative of the 'brandling' or 'tiger' worm Eisenia fetida. Like E. fetida, it is epigeic, i.e. it prefers to live in compost or leaf litter rather than mineral soils.
It can be distinguished from E. fetida as it is darker in colour, and the characteristic stripes are less pronounced. Although its status as a separate species was fully confirmed in the mid-1980s by molecular analyses (based on electrophoresis of protein isoforms), E. andrei is still often misidentified and confused with E. fetida.[2] The muscles of the Eisenia andrei embryos appear in groups of at least two distinct muscles that cross the ventral midline and initially reach towards the lateral side of the embryo.[3] The two species are very similar morphologically in terms of
their needs, general reproductive performances, and life cycles, however, E. andrei has a growth rate and cocoon production at a quicker rate than E. fetida due to its more advanced substrate nature.[4][5]
^Otomo, Laetitia Voua; Otomo, Patricks Voua; Bezuidenhout, Carlos C.; Maboeta, Mark S. (December 2013). "Molecular Assessment of Commercial and Laboratory Stocks of Eisenia Spp. (Oligochaeta: Lumbricidae) from South Africa". African Invertebrates. 54 (2): 499–511. doi:10.5733/afin.054.0220. hdl:10520/EJC146905. S2CID 55707661.
^Hunnekuhl, Vera S.; Bergter, Annette; Purschke, Günter; Paululat, Achim (September 2009). "Development and embryonic pattern of body wall musculature in the crassiclitellate Eisenia andrei (Annelida, Clitellata)". Journal of Morphology. 270 (9): 1122–1136. doi:10.1002/jmor.10749. PMID 19378268. S2CID 33637129.
^Domínguez, Velando, Ferreiro, J., A., A. (2005). "Are Eisenia fetida (Savigny, 1826) and Eisenia andrei (Oligochaeta, Lumbricidae) different biological species?" (Pedobiologia, 49(1)): 81–87. doi:10.1016/j.pedobi.2004.08.005. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^Reinecke, Viljoen, A.J., S.A (1991). "A comparison of the biology of Eisenia fetida and Eisenia andrei (Oligochaeta)" (Biol Fertil Soils 11): 295–300. doi:10.1016/j.pedobi.2004.08.005. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
Eiseniaandrei is a close relative of the 'brandling' or 'tiger' worm Eisenia fetida. Like E. fetida, it is epigeic, i.e. it prefers to live in compost...
Eisenia fetida, known under various common names such as manure worm, redworm, brandling worm, panfish worm, trout worm, tiger worm, red wiggler worm...
worms) most often used are red wigglers (Eisenia fetida or Eiseniaandrei), though European nightcrawlers (Eisenia hortensis, synonym Dendrobaena veneta)...
earthworms to decompose food waste. These are usually Eisenia fetida (or its close relative Eiseniaandrei) or the brandling worm, commonly known as the tiger...
Cluzeau, Daniel; Qiu, Jiangping (April 2014). "Responses of the earthworm Eiseniaandrei exposed to sublethal aluminium levels in an artificial soil substrate"...
sp. Growth Inhibition Test 222 Earthworm Reproduction Test (Eisenia fetida/Eiseniaandrei) 223 Avian Acute Oral Toxicity Test 224 Determination of the...
Onychiurus folsomi Schaeffer (Collembola, Onychiuridae) en lechos de Eiseniaandrei (Oligochaeta, Lumbricidae)". Boletín de Sanidad Vegetal-Plagas (in Spanish)...