Re: what are the conditions in which a lumbricus terrestis and rubellus lives?

Hi 
When I was growing up I was told that worms would come to the surface of the 
ground after it rained so that they would not drown.  Well ,  after all these 
years the sudden realization is that this was not true.
The truth of the matter is that what they are really doing is looking for a sex 
partner and a nice level flat place to mate.  

Lumbricus terrestis is commonly known as the Nightcrawler, Lumbricus rubellus is 
the amazing Redworm and is nature's best composter as well as nature's best 
fishing bait.                      

http://www.hky.com/~wormwrld/worms.htm

http://scarab.msu.montana.edu/extension/insec010.htm

 The environmental requirements for the nightcrawler and red wriggler was found 
at the following web site .

http://www.gnv.fdt.net/~windle/environ.htm

The various species of earthworms have different environmental requirements 
which are necessary for their propagation and continued health. These 
requirements will inevitably dictate whether one particular "family" of worms 
will be suitable for culture in any given circumstance. For instance,
though many people may be interested in the possibility of raising Lumbricus 
Terrestris (The Nightcrawler, or Dew Worm) in the house as a source of fishing 
bait, this is simply not very plausible when we consider that this particular 
worm prefers temperatures in the area of 5-10 degrees Celsius.
During the heat of the day, this large member of the earthworm family retreats 
to the depths of his burrow, venturing out only in the late evening, or early 
morning, the coolest available times. (Burrows have been found to extend to a 
depth of over 12 feet.) Thus, if we wish to culture this animal in the
confines of our homes, we will require the ability to refrigerate at least a 
part of the available space.
Even then, however, the number of additional considerations will eventually 
convince most people that nightcrawlers should be "harvested" rather than 
"cultured."

On the other hand, the two most commonly-used worms for vermicomposting, Eisenia 
Foetida and Lumbricus Rubellus, are the most popular precisely because of the 
ease in replicating the environmental conditions they prefer. Perfectly suited 
to an indoor existence, the culturing of these animals presents next to no 
problem, requiring only a minimum of effort, and presenting no hardship
for those of us who share their place of residence. The fact is, in the absence 
of the normal hazards these worms usually face in their outdoor habitats, they 
are found to grow faster, stay healthier, live longer, and reproduce at an 
increased rate indoors. Thus, indoor culture turns out to be heaven for
them, and a great benefit to the "landlord" who will have a great new way to 
convert his organic waste materials into a wonderful "food" for his plants, 
lawn, and garden. 

These "requirements" can be broken into three main areas, this website goes into 
quite a bit of  detail
regarding moisture, temperature and aeration. Click on the link above to learn 
about these conditions.

Hope you enjoy the websites about worms , you will find sufficient information 
to answer all your questions about worms.

June Wingert   Mad Scientist