Worms

The name worm is used for many unrelated animals that evolved a slender elongated body shape. Different groups can be distinguished from each other by their ways of locomotion. Earthworms wriggle and use bristles along their body, flatworms slowly glide with the aid of tiny cilia (hair-like structures) and nematodes (roundworms) move franticly in S-shaped curves. Some worms keep the soil healthy, others attack plants in the garden, and one, the medicinal leech  , can be used as an aid on the surgery table...

There are over 3,000 kinds of earthworm in the world. Most of them tunnel burrow in tunnels that allow air to penetrate the soil. Charles Darwin found that by this methodical work, worms could bury the equivalent of a football pitch in 15 tonnes of soil a year from the casts they leave on the surface.

Nematodes or roundworms can be found mostly in ponds, but many species are soil dwellers or live as parasite in other organisms. They form an important role in the breakdown of organic matter in soil and the bottom of ponds.

Flatworms are simple animals, often found in damp places. They are mostly scavengers or predators. Freshwater flatworms live in many aquatic habitats, from running water to ponds and lakes. The New Zealand flatworm   occurs predominantly in gardens, where it feeds exclusively on earthworms. There is still concern about its likely impact on earthworm populations in Britain as earthworms are an important prey item for many animals including badgers, buzzards and the blackbirds on your lawn but most importantly they are so important in maintaining the fertility of the soil.