Jumping worms have been found in the United States from Maine to South Carolina and west to Wisconsin. Active and damaging populations of jumping worms were discovered in Maine in 2014 in Augusta, Portland, and Boothbay. Jumping worms are widespread in Maine and have been found in 13/16 counties in Maine as of August 2023. We need your help to slow the spread of these destructive worms by reporting them when you see them and practicing good hygiene by cleaning soil from equipment and boots before leaving an area with jumping worms. A recent detection of jumping worms in a community garden in Bangor points to a commercial compost delivery as a means of establishment.
The implications of jumping worms establishing in Maine's forests and gardens are far reaching and devastating. The Jumping Worm Working Group (ME) wants your help in reporting jumping worms. Please visit survey123.arcgis.com/share/10... to report any infestations of jumping worms you find in Maine. You can also create an account on www.imapinvasives.org and report your findings there.
You can survey for jumping worms in your forests or gardens by creating a mustard powder solution that irritates worms and pushes them to the surface of the soil for relief. Mix a 1/3 cup ground mustard powder into 1 gallon of water. Clear leaf litter and debris from a 10 inch x 10 inch area without removing any worms. This will be your sampling area for the mustard solution. Slowly pour half of the solution over the soil. Within a minute or two, if present, earthworms will begin to appear. Jumping worms are easily identified by how quickly they move and thrash about, as shown in this video, as well as the white band (clittelum) that wraps around their body and is closer to the head than other earthworms. If you need help identifying whether or not you are seeing jumping worms, please take a clear photo or video of the worms that appear and contact UMaine Cooperative Extension.
Currently there are few known practical solutions for controlling jumping worms. Working groups like our and others in the United States are working to identify best management practices to slow the spread of jumping worms and looking for solutions for infested areas. Cornell University has a fact sheet for homeowners looking for answers on jumping worms that can be found here: ecommons.cornell.edu/handle/1...
For more information on jumping worms in Maine you can visit www.maine.gov/dacf/php/hortic....
University of Massachusetts Amherst recently published an extensive set of FAQs around jumping worms that can be found here ag.umass.edu/landscape/fact-s...
20 июл 2022
