“I find hundreds of earthworms in my pool after it has rained”, writes this reader in their submission, which does not include any pictures or videos. “It looks like a mass suicide? Now, I read they can survive for up to two weeks under water. Is the chlorine in the pool toxic for them, and how can I help them get back into the ground?” To start with, whether or not earthworms can survive underwater for two weeks seems to be a debatable topic. Some sources say they can survive for weeks underwater, while others say they can survive for hours. Our take is that this would be entirely dependent on the species. There are species of earthworms that belong to a group of worms called ‘bloodworms’. They are typically red in color, which they get from the excess production of hemoglobin, which does indeed allow them to survive in low oxygen conditions, such as underwater, for long periods of time. That said, not all species of earthworms are bloodworms, and we doubt the earthworms our reader found are bloodworms.

“Why did I find a worm crawling on my carpet in my bedroom?” writes Elizabeth about the worm pictured below. “I live in Northern California and we’ve been having a lot of rain, but I don’t wear shoes in this room. There is a sliding glass door a few feet away, but it hasn’t been opened in weeks (it’s winter). I have two chihuahuas under 10lbs but there is no “accident” in the room. Is it a worm? It was moving kind of fast and also trying to dig its head in the carpet. Thank you.” To answer Elizabeth’s second question, this is indeed a worm. In fact, this is an earthworm. We can tell by its pink coloration, segmentation, and the clitellum encircling its middle.

“I am getting earthworms in my home”, states this reader in her submission. She attaches a picture of a long, pink organism, though the details of the photo are a bit muddled, so we will just have to take our reader’s word for it that this is an earthworm. “I have not determined the point of entry. I expect it is my back door, although the seal and sweep appear to be okay. I get several in the house after a rain. Help, it is gross to step out of bed next to a worm! Thanks.” First of all, it makes sense that earthworms are coming out in the rain, as that is typical of earthworms, as well as all underground-dwelling organisms. The reason they do this is because, when it rains, their burrows get filled with water, so they must rise to the surface to breathe.

“Earthworms keep pushing the grout up, breaking the seal” says this reader about the creatures who have been emerging from “between the slabs” of his concrete patio in his backyard. Our reader asks us if we know how he can get the worms to “get out from under the slabs.”