Summary
The biology of the oriental vermicomposting species, Perionyx excavatus, is poorly understood. Quantitative observations were made at 25°C in urine free cattle manure in order to study the growth of this species. The rate of maturation and cocoon production were studied under conditions of favourable moisture and nutrition over a period of 250 days. The results obtained showed that while P. excavatus grows relatively slowly compared to other vermicomposting species, it attains sexual maturity much earlier and maintains a relatively high cocoon production rate. The study revealed that copulation is not a prerequisite for production of viable cocoons, indicating that P. excavatus may be parthenogenetic and possibly capable of alternating between modes of reproduction.
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Reinecke, A.J., Hallatt, L. Growth and cocoon production of Perionyx excavatus (Oligochaeta). Biol Fert Soils 8, 303–306 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00263159
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00263159