South Africa is home to the African giant earthworm (Microchaetus rappi), the largest species in the world. Found in the Eastern Cape, it averages about 1,4m in length, although a gigantic specimen of 6,7m was discovered in 1967.
The castings formed by this species are so large that they look like old grave mounds; I have seen them myself when travelling in the region. A researcher compared samples of M. rappi castings with soil samples from the surrounding area and unsurprisingly found much higher levels of carbon and nitrogen in the mounds.
Types of earthworm
There are three groups of earthworms, namely epigeic, endogeic and anecic.
• Epigeic Epigeic earthworms do not live in the soil but in surface organic matter. They are useful for converting waste organic matter into vermicompost.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der December 04, 2020-Ausgabe von Farmer's Weekly.
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Diese Geschichte stammt aus der December 04, 2020-Ausgabe von Farmer's Weekly.
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