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Worms oin Iceland (1 Viewer)

Andy Hurley

Andy Hurley

Gotta love nature!
Opus Editor
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Scotland
Hi,

does anyone know how the worms got to Iceland? I saw several birds pulling them up in grassy areas. As Iceland is a young stand-alone volcanic island in the middle of the North Altlantic, something or someone must have brought them.
 
Hi Andy

After Surtsey erupted in 1963 thirty years elapsed before the first earthworm was discovered. It was assumed to have been carried there by a bird (although how they could tell is not explained).

Martin
 
Thanks Martin,
my brother in law suggested this, but I can't see a worm surviving ingestion, nor can I imagine a bird carrying the worm all the way to Iceland and not getting hungry mid flight. Perhaps they early settlers took some earth from home with them on plant roots? Crops in a bucket? The worms could have been transported that way.
 
Worm eggs in the muddy soil on the legs/feet of eg waders or geese? Given the numbers of birds moving around, presumably ideal conditions will occur occasionally for successful transport.
 
They are nearly all introduced-18sp with some probably coming with Greenland settlers-8sp a long time ago. No link but have a pdf file if interested
 
markgrubb said:
They are nearly all introduced-18sp with some probably coming with Greenland settlers-8sp a long time ago. No link but have a pdf file if interested
Click to expand...

That would be good to see Mark. Do you have a name I can search for? Or could you PM it to me?

Thank you.
 
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