Earthworm found while cleaning yard

As earthworms silently devour leaf litter across the country, they are changing soils, restructuring ecosystems and depleting our forests' carbon stocks.

A Fairbanks high school student has discovered five species of earthworms in Interior Alaska, including one possibly native to North America.

After hitching a ride with humans, the species has colonised entire areas – and may be making the soil too fertile

Most of the 17 species of worms in Alaska seem to be exotic types that have recently settled the last Frontier with the help of humans, who gave them a lift.

It’s not what you think.