Sometimes the world gets a tiny stranger by such small degrees as to be unnoticeable. Othertimes, the strange arrives in station blaring the Albanian national anthem. This PLOS One article on “worm grunting” is the latter:
For generations many families in and around Florida's Apalachicola National Forest have supported themselves by collecting the large endemic earthworms Diplocardia mississippiensis. This is accomplished by vibrating a wooden stake driven into the soil, a practice called “worm grunting”. In response to the vibrations, worms emerge to the surface where thousands can be gathered in a few hours. Why do these earthworms suddenly exit their burrows in response to vibrations, exposing themselves to predation?
The paper specifically mentions a “worm gruntin’” festival in, presumably, sunny Wakulla County, Florida.
This video’s actually pretty cool:
Tags: Science · the south · wormsNo Comments
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