Lumbricidae

Members of Lumbricidae are native to Europe and are most diverse in southern Europe.[4] There are 30 species from the family in Ireland and Britain. Notably, a single mature individual of the species Prosellodrilus amplisetosus was found in a survey of soil biodiversity in Ireland. P. amplisetosis had never been recorded in Ireland before and is commonly found in France or Spain. It is thought to have been introduced by humans through agricultural supplies.[5] Another interesting case is of the species Dendrobaena attemsi in Scandinavia. They were first found in a national park in Sweden, the furthest north the species have been found. The discovery of D. attemsi implies the range of the species is increasing north.[6] It is not only in Sweden that species of Lumbricidae are expanding their range. Many of the species found in Finland are exhibiting similar increases in range[7] and Lumbricidae worms are also expanding into Northeastern Europe, starting from the near Baltic sea.[8]

A 2022 molecular phylogenetic study of the highly diverse Franco-Iberian genus Zophoscolex showed most of the Iberian species to form a distinct clade, formally described as Castellodrilus stat. nov..[3] Other species were moved to the genera Cataladrilus and Compostelandrilus, with the remaining species remaining in Zophoscolex restricted to French representatives.[3]

Lumbricidae make up the majority of earthworms found in China, despite not being native to the area.[4]

At higher elevations in India, some species of Lumbicidae can be found.[4]

When European settlers came to North America, so did European earthworms like the Lumbricidae. Before this, the area in North America where glaciers had been were mostly worm-free.[9] Lumbricidae worms are known to be expanding into the Great Lakes region.[8] The introduced worms have an impact on the native species and environments. Species from the family, such as Lumbricus rubelles, are believed to have displaced the local species in a number of regions.[10] In others, Lumbricidae species outnumber the native species in terms of biomass. Despite this, they are not as productive, in terms of processing nitrogen and phosphorus, as the native species.[11] Lumbricidae worms also tend to have a higher species richness than native North American worms, though the species richness of both the native and Lumbricidae decreases with increasing latitudes.[12]

Similar to North America, worms from the family were introduced to New Zealand and Australia by European settlers.[13][4]