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Common Earthworm | Daily Animal Facts

Animal profile

Common Earthworm

Lumbricus terrestris

ClitellataDeep permanent burrows in moist soils of grassland, woodland and gardens

Field profile

Lumbricus terrestris is a large anecic earthworm that builds a vertical burrow and drags leaf litter down into it at night. It is hermaphroditic, with a conspicuous saddle-like clitellum. In North America it is an introduced species with substantial ecological effects.

Scope note

This is an editorial profile, not a diagnostic field-identification guide or a substitute for current conservation assessments. Follow the cited sources on each fact for the evidence trail.

Published field notes

2025-11-20

Common Earthworm

North America's garden earthworms are mostly European invaders

Glaciation wiped earthworms from much of northern North America. The large worms now turning garden soil there arrived with European settlement, and in northern hardwood forests they strip the leaf-litter layer that native plants depend on.

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