Super Stellar Friday: Invasion of the Jumping Worms

November 2020
It may be surprising to hear, but in the Northeastern United States all earthworms are invasive species. This means that although they are great for our compost, they can be harmful to the health of the forests they have invaded. Many of these worms, like nightcrawlers, are European transplants brought over by settlers in the 1700s. But much more recently, new and seemingly more nefarious species from Asia have arrived: jumping worms. They have been rapidly spreading through the Midwest and Northeast and are aggressively invasive, in part due to their unique annual life cycle. So what impacts will these invaders have on the future of our forests? Join us to learn about invasive jumping earthworms and their impact on ecosystems in New York with our Education Specialist, Wallis Boram!