THE BIONOMICS OF ENGLISH OLIGOCH^ETA 103 



described) in a garden in Cornwall, to say nothing of certain 

 more or less well-known species which occur in Kew Gardens. 

 During the spring of the present year Allolobophora antipce Mich, 

 was found by me at Blenheim Palace, A. norvegica Eisen and 

 possibly other species new to Britain being discovered about 

 the same time in Dublin. All these have a bionomic value which 

 is unique, and suggest the need of a much more systematic 

 examination than has ever yet been undertaken. 



Having referred in the foregoing section to those species 

 which are of rare occurrence or limited range, it may be well to 

 add that a certain number of species are everywhere to be met 

 with. Lumbricus terrestris L. and Allolobophora longa Ude are 

 the dominant types. L. rubellus Hoff. and L. castaneus Savigny 

 abound in meadows ; L. festivus Sav. being less common. 

 A. chlorotica is always to be found in damp places, under stones, 

 and near the haunts of cattle, where A. caliginosa (which includes 

 turgida and trapezoides) is also frequently discovered. The 

 brandling and gilt-tail, to be mentioned again later, are ubiquit- 

 ous, the curious tree worms are fairly common in old tree trunks, 

 and in road scrapings one is pretty sure to meet with D. mam- 

 malis. In gardens and fields one finds two species of Octolasium 

 pretty generally distributed, and E. rosea is another of the widely 

 known species. Having just completed a report on the distribu- 

 tion of earthworms in England I may refer the interested reader 

 to the pages of the Zoologist for further details. 



Habits and Habitats. — We may naturally pass on to a little 

 fuller study of some details in the life-history of our indigenous 

 earthworms. Is it possible to tell where certain species may be 

 found? Can one judge by the locality what species are likely 

 to occur ? The answer is in the affirmative. Thus if one sees 

 a decaying tree trunk in a moist condition he may be pretty 

 certain that he will not look in vain for such species as D. arborea, 

 D. subrubicunda, L. castaneus, B. eiseni, and somewhat rarely 

 D. octcedra. Several of these also occur in leaf mould, along with 

 D. merciensis, L. rubellus, and Eisenia rosea, veneta or foetida. 

 The latter (E. foetida Sav.), which is popularly known as the 

 Brandling, is the first to attach itself to stable manure. It will 

 thrive in such material long before any other species can find a 

 subsistence in the strong pungent mass. When decomposition 

 has set in, however, L. terrestris, L. rubellus, and D. subrubicunda 

 will become common, along with large quantities of Enchytrceus 



