For an article published in Ambrook Research, Forest Resources Research Lee Frelich shares how invasive earthworms wreak havoc on ecosystems, particularly in Upper Midwest forests. It's a topic he's studied for close to two decades.
"Many native earthworms are 'soil feeders,' meaning they mostly stay underground and churn through the subterranean soil," writes the article's journalist, Ethan Freedman. "Many of the introduced species, on the other hand, are 'litter feeders,' meaning they eat through the layer of fallen leaves and other material that gathers on the surface."
The result? “Earthworm invasions are fundamentally transforming the soil, so they’re fundamentally transforming ecosystems,” says Frelich. “And that affects everything.”
Read "Not All Earthworms Are Cool." Ambrook Research is editorially independent but backed by Ambrook, a company making sustainability profitable in natural resource industries, starting by providing back-office financial tools for farmers.