Lumbricus herculeus and Lumbricus terrestris, widely spread invasive earthworms native to Europe.
Invasive species of earthworms from the suborder Lumbricina have been expanding their range in North America.[1] Earthworms are considered one of the most abundant macroinvertebrates in the soil of ecosystems in temperate and tropical climates.[2] There are around 3,000 species known worldwide.[2] They are considered keystone species in their native habitats of Asia and Europe because, as detritivores, they alter many different variables of their ecosystem.[3] Their introduction to North America has had marked effects on the nutrient cycles and soil profiles in temperate forests. These earthworms increase the cycling and leaching of nutrients by breaking up decaying organic matter and spreading it into the soil. This thins out the soil rapidly because earthworms do not require a mate to reproduce, allowing them to spread fast.[4] Since plants native to these northern forests are evolutionarily adapted to the presence of thick layers of decaying organic matter, the introduction of worms can lead to a loss of biodiversity as young plants face less nutrient-rich conditions. Some species of trees and other plants may be incapable of surviving such changes in available nutrients.[5] This change in the plant diversity in turn affects other organisms and often leads to increased invasions of other exotic species as well as overall forest decline.[3][6] They are considered one of the most invasive animals in the Midwestern United States along with feral swine.[7]
^Nico Eisenhauer, Stephan Partsch, Dennis Parkinson and Stefan Scheu. 2007. Invasion of a deciduous forest by earthworms: changes in soil chemistry, microflora, microarthropds, and vegetation. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 39: 1099-110.doi:10.1016/j.soilbio.2006.12.019
^ abEdwards, Clive A.; Arancon, Norman Q. (2022). "Biology and Ecology of Earthworms". Springer. doi:10.1007/978-0-387-74943-3. ISBN 978-0-387-74942-6.
^ abLee E. Frelich, Cindy M. Hale, Stefan Scheu, Andrew R. Holdsworth, Liam Heneghan, Patrick J. Bohlen and Peter B. Reich. 2006. Earthworm invasion into previously earthworm-free temperate and boreal forests. Biological Invasions 8: 1235–245. doi:10.1007/s10530-006-9019-3
^"Invasive jumping worms damage U.S. soil and threaten forests". Science News. 2020-09-29. Retrieved 2020-10-01.
^Campbell, Neil A., and Jane B. Reece. 2009. Biology. San Francisco: Pearson Benjamin Cummings.
^Katalin Szlavecza, Sarah A. Placellaa, Richard V. Pouyatb, Peter M. Groffmanc, Csaba Csuzdid and Ian Yesilonis. 2006. Invasive earthworm species and nitrogen cycling in remnant forest patches. Applied Soil Ecology 32: 54-62. doi:10.1016/j.apsoil.2005.01.006
^Poland, Therese M.; Patel-Weynand, Toral; Finch, Deborah M.; Miniat, Chelcy Ford; Hayes, Deborah C.; Lopez, Vanessa M. (2021), "Correction to: Invasive Species in Forests and Rangelands of the United States", Invasive Species in Forests and Rangelands of the United States, Cham: Springer International Publishing, pp. C1, doi:10.1007/978-3-030-45367-1_17, ISBN 978-3-030-45366-4
and 28 Related for: Invasive earthworms of North America information
Invasive species ofearthworms from the suborder Lumbricina have been expanding their range in NorthAmerica. Earthworms are considered one of the most...
Earthworms are invasive species throughout the world. Of a total of about 6,000 species ofearthworm, about 120 species are widely distributed around the...
frequently seen on the surface, unlike most other earthworms. It is also used as the example earthworm for millions of biology students around the world, even in...
anus. Earthworms are hermaphrodites: each worm carries male and female reproductive organs and genital pores. When mating, two individual earthworms will...
species ofearthworm in the family Megascolecidae. It is native to Japan and the Korean Peninsula. It is an invasive species in NorthAmerica. These worms...
exotic earthworms that do not have the potential to affect other organisms, so prevention of introductions is more important. Earthworms as invasive species...
consists of invertebrates (such as beetle grubs, earthworms, and caterpillars), fruits, and berries. It is one of the earliest bird species to lay its eggs,...
; Zehner, S.; Ducey, P. K. (2004). "Tracking and predation on earthworms by the invasive terrestrial planarian Bipalium adventitium (Tricladida, Platyhelminthes)"...
any earthworm, including those that are 100 times their own mass. In NorthAmerica, where B. adventitium is an introduced species, most earthworms do not...
in the confines of a worm bin. Some species are considered invasive in some areas, so they should be avoided (see earthworms as invasive species for a list)...
BRUCE A.; SZLAVECZ, KATALIN (2016-10-31). "Asian pheretimoid earthworms in NorthAmericanorthof Mexico: An illustrated key to the genera Amynthas, Metaphire...
associated with invasive European earthworms (Lumbricus spp.) in the northern Midwest ofNorthAmerica. Removing R. cathartica led to a decrease of around 50%...
Lumbricidae are a family ofearthworms. About 33 lumbricid species have become naturalized around the world, but the bulk of the species are in the Holarctic...
genus is one of the few remaining native earthworms in many NorthAmerican environments, for example it appears to be the only extant earthworm native to...
Megascolecidae is a family ofearthworms native to Madagascar, Australia, New Zealand, Asia, and NorthAmerica. All species of the Megascolecidae belong...
is considered an invasive species in parts of Europe. This species is included since 2019 in the list ofInvasive Alien Species of Union concern (the...
diffuse dark brown stripes. Differently from other invasive species of Bipalium, which feed on earthworms, B. vagum seems to feed exclusively on gastropods...
dominance in comparison to other understory plant species in areas where invasiveearthworms were present for two decades or more. It is hypothesized that since...
many other parts of the world. They are completely fossorial (i.e., burrowing) reptiles, with habits and appearance similar to earthworms, for which they...
NorthAmerican species of Anaxyrus are thought to be descended from an invasionof toads from South America prior to the formation of the Isthmus of Panama...
native to NorthAmerica. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of 40 to 70 cm (16 to 28 in), and a body weight of 5 to 26 kg...
rapid expansion in NorthAmerica is characteristic of an invasive species. Due to the variation in habitat, their diet consists of small arthropods (less...
Although in NorthAmerica it is a native plant, the cup plant has been declared invasive in several States in the US. Therefore, its invasiveness is in active...
might be able to slow the spread ofinvasive slugs, preventing any possible competition between native and invasive slugs and protecting sensitive species...
; Zehner, S.; Ducey, P. K. (2004). "Tracking and predation on earthworms by the invasive terrestrial planarian Bipalium adventitium (Tricladida, Platyhelminthes)"...
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