Chap. III. BROUGHT UP BY WORMS. 



161 



making deep burrows. This is rendered 

 almost certain by the following weights of the 

 castings thrown up at the mouths of single 

 burrows ; the whole of which appeared to 

 have been ejected within no long time, as was 

 certainly the case in several instances. The 

 castings were dried (excepting in one specified 

 instance) by exposure during many days to 

 the sun or before a hot fire. 



Weight of the Castings accumulated at the mouth 

 of a single burrow. 



(1.) Down, Kent (sub-soil red clay, full of flints, over- 

 lying the chalk). The largest casting which I 

 could find on the flanks of a steep valley, the 

 sub-soil being here shallow. In this one case, the 

 casting was not well dried .. 



(2.) Down. Largest casting which I could find (con-1 

 sisting chiefly of calcareous matter), on extremely I 

 poor pasture land at the bottom of the valley [ 

 mentioned under (1.) .. .. .. ..' 



(3.) Down. A large casting, but not of unusual size, 

 from a nearly level field, poor pasture, laid down in 

 grass about 35 years before.. 



(4.) Down. Average weight of 11 not large castings] 

 ejected on a sloping surface on my lawn, after they I 

 had suffered some loss of weight from being exposed I 

 during a considerable length of time to rain .. ) 



(5.) Near Nice in France. Average weight of 12' 

 castings of ordinary dimensions, collected by Dr. 

 King on land which had not been mown for a long 

 time and where worms abounded, viz., a lawn pro- 

 tected by shrubberies, near the sea ; soil sandy and 

 calcareous ; these castings had been exposed for some 

 time to rain, before being collected, and must have 

 _ost some weight by disintegration, but they still re- 

 tained their form 



Ounces. 



3*98 



3-87 



1-22 



0-7 



1-37 



