Earthworms could be villains for certain species of plants.
By Dileep Thekkethil
Proving wrong the common perception that earthworms are friendly to the natural ecosystem, a team of Canadian researchers have found that the worm, which was thought to be a farmer’s friend, if found in abundance, could affect the diversity of certain species of plant and could adversely affect the eco-system.
According to the researchers at the Canada’s Université Laval and Université de Sherbrooke, there visit to sugar maple forests in Quebec province lead to the finding that new shoots of red maple, strip maple, American beech and two fern species became rare in places where earthworms were breeding in abundance.
Line Lapointe, a professor at Université Laval’s faculty of science and engineering and the study’s lead author said “The most likely explanation is that the earthworms consume organic matter in forest litter.”
She also added “This results in soils that can’t hold as much moisture, and that in turn interferes with seed germination and the ability of some species’ plantlets to survive.”
According to the researchers the presence of earthworms in the sugar maple forests have radically changed the composition of the plant, which is dangerous to the natural eco-system.
“If nothing is done, these changes could become more pronounced and spread to other forest communities,” Lapointe said.
“Earthworms used for bait should never be released in the forest,” Lapointe said. “Anglers who use them for fishing should pack them back out afterwards, or if that’s not possible, throw them into the lake,” she added.
The new study that rewrites the common perception about earthworms was published in the recent issue of Forest Ecology and Management.