World's Biggest Earthworm Discovered, But Killed

A massive earthworm named Dave has made its way into the record books as the biggest ever found in the United Kingdom. Measuring 15.7 inches, researchers at the Natural History Museum were baffled by its size.

It was found by Paul Rees in his vegetable garden in Cheshire Country and was christened by his stepson, George. The weight of the earthworm is approximately an ounce, nearly twice as heavy as a wild earthworm. That translates to the size of a tiny chocolate bar.

Emma Sherlock from the National History Museum was astonished when she opened the plastic box that was sent in. She hopes to see if anyone can discover a bigger organism than the latest find by participating in the Earthworm Watch Survey this fall. Earthworm Watch is a survey of earthworms and quality of the soil in the UK that is organized by the National History Museum and other associated groups.

However, to the dismay of many earthworm lovers, Dave had to be killed for scientific reasons. The creature will now be exhibited at the museum. Twitter users vociferously showed their animosity at the fate of the worm.

The largest earthworm found before Dave was in Scotland in the year 2015, which weighed half an ounce. Scientifically known as Lumbricus terrestris, the creature is a huge reddish worm species found mainly in Europe. Big-sized earthworms reach lengths between 8 and 10 inches. Since they have a whole bunch of predators, their life span is not so long. At the most, they have reached six years in captivity.

Earthworms improve the carbon storage of the soil by mixing decayed plant material, eventually improving the soil's fertility. With worms of the size of Dave, Rees must have a highly well-drained and fertile plot, with the decomposed elements being recycled back quickly into the soil, said Sherlock. The reason on how the worm got to be so huge is still a mystery.