The most conspicuous biological inva- sions in terrestrial ecosystems have been by exotic plants, insects and vertebrates. Invasions by exo- tic earthworms, although not as well studied, may be increasing with global commerce in agricul- ture, waste management and bioremediation. A number of cases has documented where invasive earthworms have caused significant changes in soil profiles, nutrient and organic matter dynamics, other soil organisms or plant commu- nities. Most of these cases are in areas that have been disturbed (e.g., agricultural systems) or were previously devoid of earthworms (e.g., north of Pleistocene glacial margins). It is not clear that such effects are common in ecosystems inhabited by native earthworms, especially where soils are undisturbed. We explore the idea that indigenous earthworm fauna and/or characteristics of their

https://www.fs.fed.us/global/iitf/pubs/ja_iitf_2006_hendrix001.pdf

Invasion of exotic earthworms into ecosystems inhabited by native earthworms

The invasion of jumping worms, a small group of pheretimoid earthworm species from Asia, has increasingly become an ecological, environmental and conservation issue in forest ecosystems and urban-suburban landscapes around the world. Their presence is often noticed due to their high abundance, distinctive “jumping” behavior, and prominent granular casts on the soil surface. Although they are known to affect soil carbon dynamics and nutrient availability, no single paper has summarized their profound impacts on soil biodiversity, plant community, and animals of all trophic groups that rely on soil and the leaf litter layer for habitat, food, and shelter. In this study, we summarize the biology, invasion, and ecological impacts of invasive jumping worms across North America. We highlight potential impacts of this second wave of earthworm invasion, contrast them with the preceding European earthworm invasion in temperate forests in North America, and identify annual life cycle, reproductive and cocoon survival strategies, casting behavior and co-invasion dynamics as the key factors that contribute to their successful invasion and distinct ecological impacts. We then suggest potential management and control strategies for practitioners and policy makers, underscore the importance of coordinated community science projects in tracking the spread, and identify knowledge gaps that need to be addressed to understand and control the invasion.

/pdf/the-second-wave-of-earthworm-invasions-in-north-america-2k4ae2y58y.pdf

The second wave of earthworm invasions in North America: biology, environmental impacts, management and control of invasive jumping worms

En America Latina (AL), existen relativamente pocos trabajos sobre la biologia, ecologia y distribucion de lombrices de tierra, siendo el conocimiento de sus interacciones ecologicas y de su importancia en diferentes ecosistemas (especialmente en vegetacion nativa) muy reducido. Consecuentemente, el potencial en AL de estos organismos como recurso natural noha sido totalmente explotado. Actualmente se conocen para AL 960 especies de lombrices, pertenecientes a 125 generos repartidos en 12 familias. De estas especies, 93% son nativas,y al menos dos familias y muchos generos son endemicos para alguna zona de estga region. Brasil tiene la mayor diversidad (305 spp.), seguido de Ecuador y Colombia (139 spp), Mexico (135 spp.), las islas del Caribe (128 spp.), Chile, Argentina y Venezuela (80, 79 y 74 spp. respectivamente). Glossoscolecidae es la familia mejor representada (56% de total de especies), seguida de Acanthodrilidae (28%) y Ocnerodrilidae (9%), todas ellas con proporcion importante (>95%) de especies nativas. Varias especies exoticas (66 spp.), especialmente de las familias Megascolecidae, Acanthodrilidae (Benhamiinae) y Lumbricidae, han invadido areas agricolas (principalmente) y ambientes naturales; sin embargo hay poca informacion de sus efectos en el suelo y sobre las poblaciones de nativas. La oligoquetofauna de extensas areas del continente continua todavia desconocida, incluyendo algunos paises con pocos registros de especies. Hay tambien varias especies nativas que estan o pueden estar en riesgo de extincion debido principalmente a la perdida del habitat natural y a su colecta excesiva (v.g. para pesca). La mayor parte de las especies fueron descritas por Righi (>220 spp.), Michaelsen y Zicsi, aunque otros taxonomos (Cernosvitov, Cognetti, Rosa, Eisen, Beddard, Benham, Cordero, Gates, Sims, Graff, Csuzdi, Fragoso, James Rodriguez, Borges, Moreno, Jamieson) tambien realizaron contribuciones importantes. Sin embargo, es necessario formar mas taxonomos que contribuyan y continuen con la determinacion de especies, que sera de gran ayuda para otros estudios (sobre ecologia,taxonomia,biogeografia, distribucion) que se lleven a cabo en los diferentes ecosistemas y biomas del continente, incluyendo sus uso potencial como bioindicadoras ambientales. Este libro es el resultado de las presentaciones realizadas en el 1er Encuentro Latino-Americano de Ecologia y Taxonomia de Oligoquetos (ELAETAO1) celebrado en diciembre de 2003 en Londrina, Brasil. Se trata de una sintesis del conocimiento de la diversidad de las lombrices de tierra de AL e incluye una lista de todas las especies conocidas y su distribucion en cada pais latino-americano. Tambien contiene diversos trabajos sobre el uso de las lombrices como bioindicadoras ambientales y como productoras de humus (lombricomostaje). Se espera que esta sintesis contribuya a estimular la investigacion en esta area poco estudiada de la zoologia

Ecología y taxonomía de las lombrices de tierra en Latinoamérica: El primer Encuentro Latino-Americano de Ecología y Taxomía de Oligoquetos (ELAETAO1).


 Asian pheretimoid earthworms of the genera Amynthas and Metaphire (jumping worms) are leading a new wave of coinvasion into Northeastern and Midwestern states, with potential consequences for native organisms and ecosystem processes. However, little is known about their distribution, abundance, and habitat preferences in urban landscapes—areas that will likely influence their range expansion via human-driven spread. We led a participatory field campaign to assess jumping worm distribution and abundance in Madison, Wisconsin, in the United States. By compressing 250 person-hours of sampling effort into a single day, we quantified the presence and abundance of three jumping worm species across different land-cover types (forest, grassland, open space, and residential lawns and gardens), finding that urban green spaces differed in invasibility. We show that community science can be powerful for researching invasive species while engaging the public in conservation. This approach was particularly effective in the present study, where broad spatial sampling was required within a short temporal window.

Ready, Set, Go: Community Science Field Campaign Reveals Habitat Preferences of Nonnative Asian Earthworms in an Urban Landscape

Abstract: Terrestrial plethodontid salamanders are abundant predators within the forest floor litter of eastern North America, and are hypothesized to regulate soil and litter invertebrate density and species composition. I tested this hypothesis during a 6-yr study of the effects of the Eastern Red-backed Salamander (Plethodon cinereus) on the invertebrate community of a forest site in northeast Ohio. Salamander surface density, invertebrate abundance, and community composition were monitored within 30 open, circular plots. Variation in plot occupancy by P. cinereus was achieved by supplying plots with differing amounts of artificial cover (0, 1, or 4 ceramic tiles) that served as refuges for the salamanders. Salamander plot occupancy, invertebrate density, leaf litter mass, and leaf litter moisture were quantified each spring and fall from 2003 through 2008. Statistically significant effects of salamander plot-occupancy on invertebrate densities were found for several taxa of mesofauna, including several Collembola taxa, oribatid mites, pseudoscorpions, and psocoptera. The strength and direction of salamander effects varied among taxa and included negative, positive, and no effects on invertebrate densities. The magnitude and sign of salamander effects on invertebrate densities were predicted by seasonal and interannual variation in leaf litter mass and, to a lesser extent, litter moisture content. Salamander effects decreased with increasing litter mass and were more often negative when litter mass was high, whereas positive effects on invertebrate densities were more likely when litter mass was low. For several taxa, the positive effect of P. cinereus also increased with litter moisture. I propose two mechanistic hypotheses for these dynamics that integrate behavioral ecology of salamander prey selection and territorial defense with variation in litter mass and litter moisture.

Top-down regulation of litter invertebrates by a

https://www.srs.fs.usda.gov/pubs/ja/2021/ja_2021_callaham_001.pdf

Jaime Ortiz-Pachar

Papers

The second wave of earthworm invasions in North America: biology, environmental impacts, management and control of invasive jumping worms

Tools for monitoring and study of peregrine pheretimoid earthworms (Megascolecidae)