Earthworms interesting facts

May 14, 2010 | In: Animal facts for kids

Earthworm is one of the slimiest creatures in this world.

There are approximately 2,700 different kinds of earthworms.

Charles Darwin spent 39 years studying earthworms more than 100 years ago.

Worms are hermaphrodites. Each worm has both male and female organs.

Earthworms usually come out of the dirt after excessive rain storms, since the soil becomes too moist for them to survive.

The giant South African earthworm (Microhaetus rappi) can grow up to 22 feet (6.7 meters) long! The largest ones are almost an inch (2.5 cm) in diameter.

An Australian species, the great Gippsland gurgling earthworm (Megascolides australis), can get as long as 12 feet (3.7 meters), and is known for the sucking, gurgling noises it makes as it digs in the ground.

There are about 2,700 different kinds of earthworms. In one acre of good soil, there can be over a million of them. Many of the species of earthworms now found in North America were originally brought over by European settlers.