Would temperature affect there reproduction and food consumption?
Answer Dear Vidal: Earthworms survive best in temperatures ranging from 50 F to 75 F, which is the approximate temperature of an ambient air cooled gardener’s compost heap during summer months. Earthworms cannot maintain a steady body temperature like humans or dogs or cattle. This means their respiration rate rises with increasing temperature. Increasing respiration rates mean increased metabolic rates which means increased energy requirements which means increased feeding rates by worms or food must be “stolen” from reserves in the worms’ own body tissues. The reverse is true for decreasing temperatures. Different species of earthworms are adapted to different climates (temperature and moisture) and to different soil types (high organic carbon content) to mineral soils (very low carbon content). These adaptations are responsible for a wide range of physiological differences between earthworm species. I am unaware of any specific available data regarding earthworms’ reproduction and i
