The Earthivorms of Ireland. n 



future investigators, I venture to lay before the reader an 

 account of those species which have thus far been identified. 



The indigenous earthworms of Great Britain are, as far as 

 at present known, without exception, members of one family 

 — the LicmbricidcE. This family is composed of some half a 

 dozen genera, four at least of which are represented in our 

 fauna. These genera bear the following names, Lumbricus, 

 Allolobophora, Dendrobccjia, and Allurus. One or two others, 

 (as Crodrihts, and Tetragommci) are at the present time either 

 unknown within our borders, or their affinities are doubtful. 

 Further research will alone enable us to decide some points 

 which sadly need elucidation, and our readers will render good 

 service to science by doing all intheirpowerto aid in the solution 

 of these difficulties. Meanwhile I shall be content to treat 

 only of such genera and species as I have been able personally 

 to examine and determine. As indicative of the present state 

 of knowledge on this subject it may be remarked that my 

 paper communicated to the British Association last year, con- 

 tained an account of a score of indigenous species, whereas 

 ten years ago it was assumed that we had only eight or nine 

 native worms in Great Britain. Since that paper was written 

 the number has been raised to twenty-four or twenty-five. 

 There are five species of Lunibricus, and as many of Alliutcs, 

 while all the rest belong to the two remaining genera, whose 

 boundaries have yet to be accurately defined. 



In this first part of my paper I confine my attention to the 

 oldest genus, and describe only those species of Ltimbriciis 

 which are known to-day as Irish. These are five in number, 

 but there is every reason to believe that one other species 

 might be found in the Island. We may take them in the 

 order in which they were made known to the public. 



LumUricus tcrrcstris, Linn.— Common Earthworm. At last, after 

 the lapse of nearly a century and a half, since Linnaeus first named 

 this animal, we are able to give an accurate account of the same. Con- 

 fusion has been worse confounded again and again by the mixing up 

 of half a dozen different species under the old name, and even so recently 

 as the last decade systematists had not discovered the difference be- 

 tween the long worm {Allolobophora longa, Ude), and the earthworm, 

 though they belonged to separate genera. To distinguish these two 

 genera attention must be paid to the formation of the head, and the 

 method by which the front lobe is inserted into the first ring. It t he 

 first ring is cut entirely in two by the backward prolongation ot the 

 front lobe or prostomium, when viewed from above (fig. i) we conclude 

 that the worm is a species oi Liunbriais ; if it is only partially cut (hg 2) 

 we are examining a representative of the genus Allolobophora. ihere 

 are exceptions which will be noted later. The earthworm is usually 



C 



