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 such as redworm … is a species of earthworm adapted to decaying organic material. These worms thrive in rotting vegetation, compost, and manure … rarely found in soil. E. fetida worms are used for vermicomposting of both domestic and industrial organic waste.^[

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.

On Aug 30, 20, at 5:59 PM, David Webster <dwebster@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
_______________________________________________
Naturens mailing list -- naturens@chebucto.ns.ca
To unsubscribe send an email to naturens-leave@chebucto.ns.ca