At the Biological Recording Company, one of our 4 primary aims is to increase our knowledge of earthworms by delivering training courses and recording events across the UK. Most of these are free to attend due to funding from partners (or just our own goodwill), and all of them are components of the Earthworm ID Training Pathway endorsed by the Earthworm Society of Britain. Keiron Derek Brown, National Recorder for Earthworms, will be delivering each and every course or event – ensuring that all earthworm records generated are submitted to the National Earthworm Recording Scheme.
This spring there is a wealth of opportunities to get involved, including courses or events in North Yorkshire, Lancashire, Wiltshire and London – so check out the programme below and why not sign up to some and help us better understand UK earthworm populations?
Spring 2023 Programme
- 18/04/2023 Earthworm Sampling Day Barnes (London)
- 19/04/2023 Earthworm Study Day** Kensington (London)
- 25/04/2023 Earthworm Sampling Day Middleton Down (Wiltshire)
- 26/04/2023 Earthworm Sampling Day* Tolworth (London)
- 02/05/2023 Earthworm Biology & Ecology Gisburn Forest (Lancashire)
- 10/05/2023 Earthworm Sampling Day Ealing (London)
- 20/05/2023 Earthworm Sampling Day* Chiswick (London)
- 22/05/2023 Earthworm Identification*** Hawes (North Yorkshire)
- 23/05/2023 Earthworm Sampling Day Low Row (North Yorkshire)
- 24/05/2023 Earthworm Study Day*** Hawes (North Yorkshire)
- 17/06/2023 Earthworm Sampling Day* Hounslow (London)
- 21/06/2023 Earthworm Study Day** Kensington (London)
* Event listed as Invertebrate Field Recorder Day – select ‘Earthworm Sampling Day ticket’ when booking.
** Event listed as Invertebrate Study Day – add a note that you’d like to focus on earthworms when booking.
*** These events are not publicly listed as spaces are reserved for local volunteers. If you would like to be added to the waiting list for these (in case local volunteers don’t take all of the spaces on offer), please email Keiron at keironderekbrown@gmail.com
Types of Courses & Events
So which type of course or event is right for your experience level? The truth is that most of them are designed to be accessible to any naturalist that wants to branch out into earthworms. Below is a description of each of the event types to help you decide which one (or ones) is right for you.
Earthworm Biology and Ecology training courses are designed for absolute beginners. They don’t teach ID or surveying, and instead focus on giving learners an understanding of earthworm biology, ecology and behaviour. This includes learning about earthworms beyond the British Isles and is designed to give you the confidence to go onto one of the Earthworm Identification courses. It’s not all indoor learning though – as we’ll go for an earthworm walk and try to find examples of each of the different ecological categories of earthworm.
Earthworm Sampling Days do exactly what it says on the tin! These involve sampling a site (such as a farm, nature reserve or park) to collect specimens so that a site species list can be created (or updated if surveyed previously). Earthworms can’t be identified in the field so no ID experience is necessary, and you’ll learn how to undertake soil pit surveying and microhabitat sampling for earthworms. Earthworm sampling is slow work so the more people that volunteer to help on these days, the better.
Earthworm Identification training courses are microscope-based training courses that teach learners with no previous experience how to use a microscope and the Key to the Earthworms of the UK & Ireland to identify preserved earthworm specimens. We don’t mess around with lengthy presentations – expect these courses to be mainly practical as you work through the specimens from our teaching collection.
Earthworm Study Days are for those that have some experience of earthworm ID using microscopes and the key (such as attendance of an Earthworm Identification course). They may involve working on specimens from a previous Earthworm Sampling Day or your own specimens from your garden – but, either way, they are a great way to practice your ID under the guidance of an earthworm specialist.
entoLEARN Webinars
As if that isn’t enough earthworm learning opportunities, the Biological Recording Company has teamed up with the Forest of Bowland AONB and Yorkshire Dales National Park to bring you 2 FREE entoLEARN webinars about earthworms this spring!
Introduction To Earthworms (27 Apr 23) will go over what makes an earthworm an earthworm and explore some of the fascinating aspects of their biology, ecology and behaviour, and discuss how not all earthworms are found below ground
Earthworms For Farmers (11 May 23) will introduce how different types of earthworms contribute to these agricultural benefits in different ways, what threats our earthworms face in agricultural landscapes and what farming practices might be better for supporting healthy earthworm populations.
More on earthworms
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