Abstract
Although ample research exists on the ecological impacts of earthworm invasion in the Great Lakes region and northern hardwood forests, little data is available on the presence, distribution, and impact of earthworms in the prairies of the Northern Tallgrass Prairie. Sampling in a Northern Tallgrass Prairie fragment yielded three species of invasive earthworms occupying three different functional groups: surface and litter dwellers (epigeic), subsurface horizontal burrowers (endogeic), and deep vertical bore inhabitants (anecic). This research note illustrates the presence of non-native and potentially invasive earthworms in Northern Tallgrass Prairie.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the Agriculture Research Station at South Dakota State University. The fieldwork was cheerfully done by students in the Biological Invasion class of 2015 at South Dakota State University.
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Henshue, N., Mordhorst, C. & Perkins, L. Invasive earthworms in a Northern Great Plains prairie fragment. Biol Invasions 20, 29–32 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-017-1509-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-017-1509-y