Not all earthworms burrow down in the soil but this, I think, is Lumbricus terrestris, our largest earthworm and it makes permanent vertical burrows with side chambers. This one occurred in a large flower pot when the soil was emptied out. Please excuse the irritating whistling noise. It's a terrible habit I seem to have developed when videoing invertebrates.
It seems quite keen to get out of the bright sunlight. It has bristles on each segment. These grip the soil so that it can use muscular contractions to move along at quite a pace. They mostly only come out at night to avoid predation by birds, slow worms, frogs, newts and toads. Unfortunately for the worms, foxes, hedgehogs and badgers are also nocturnal, and moles are after them all day and all night.
They collect decaying leaves, which they drag back to their burrows, In autumn you can see leaves half sticking out of the ground, and at this time of year bundles of skeletal dead leaves are the product of earthworm foraging. Ash, poplar and aspen are their favourites followed by maple. Oak is less palatable.
Mating is another nocturnal activity - for worms too. Worms are hermaphrodite but have to find a neighbour to mate with. They keep their tails in their own burrow and stretch out to meet the significant other, also anchored in its home burrow. Eggs are laid in the saddle, a pale swelling on mature worms, which slides off to make a cocoon.
They are important soil conditioners, improving aeration, drainage and nutrient recycling. Worm casts are great for promoting the root growth of young seedlings.
Sorry about the whistling!
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