30 Aug
2020
30 Aug
'20
7:16 p.m.
Hello, David,
The compost is a black plastic tall dome, a little larger than a steel trash can, with no
floor. It has vents around the sides. The lid is spaced to provide more ventilation and
apparently to allow these worms to gather.
On the question of “Are they worms?†here is a splicing of Wikipedia phrases:
Eisenia fetida (older spelling: foetida), known under various common names
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_names> such as redworm … is a species of
earthworm <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earthworm> adapted to decaying
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decomposition> organic material. These worms thrive
in rotting vegetation <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vegetation>, compost
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compost>, and manure
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manure> … rarely found in soil. E. fetida worms are
used for vermicomposting <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vermicompost> of both
domestic and industrial organic waste.[
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eisenia_fetida#cite_note-Albanell1988-2>
This is what I think the creatures are. I have now learned that there is no point in
adding them to my garden soil along with the compost because all they want is the decaying
organic matter.
But I still haven’t seen anything that explains the behaviour below.
Cheers,
Nancy
On Aug 30, 20, at 5:59 PM, David Webster
<dwebster(a)glinx.com> wrote:
Hi Nancy,
I don't know what a compost bin is, just use the ground, but I wonder if these
are not earthworms but instead are some kind of fly larvae.
Dave
On 8/30/2020 3:59 PM, Nancy Roberts wrote:
> Hello,
>
> Sometimes I find a writhing wad of the smaller red earthworms right on the rim of my
typical black compost bin. The compost might be only halfway up the sides, so they have
deliberately and concertedly made quite a climb.
>
> What for?
>
> There are pockets of them wadded together down in the compost as well, for instance
inside a rotted-out avocado pit or hollowed corn cob, so they can be close without meeting
up on the rim.
>
> Thank you for your insights,
>
> Nancy Roberts
>
>
>
>
>
>
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