Dave the UK's largest ever earthworm is discovered... and then killed by scientists

Tom Powell4 November 2016

A giant earthworm called Dave was hailed as the biggest ever in the UK has been killed by scientists just days after he was discovered.

The 40cm annelid was the size of a small snake and at 26g was almost twice as heavy as any other worm.

Paul Rees from Widnes spotted the monster creature in his vegetable patch and his stepson George named it Dave.

Natural History Museum scientist Emma Sherlock, who chairs the Earthworm Society of Britain, said: "I was bowled over by the size of this worm when I opened the plastic box they sent it in.

"Not only is it really long, it is almost twice as heavy as any other wild earthworm ever seen, weighing the same as a small chocolate bar."

Dave: the giant worm with scientist Emma Sherlock
PA

However, it was later revealed the worm was killed by museum staff in the name of science.

Ms Sherlock said: “It’s always a very painless process in that we anaesthetise the animal first. We were as kind as we possibly could be.

“We fix him properly and then add him to the national collection, so he’s going to be known as Dave for ever more, and be available for science and scientists all round the world.”

The previous record holders were earthworms from the Scottish island of Rum, unearthed in 2015, with the longest growing to 39.6cm. However, they were on the skinny side, none weighing more than 12.6g.

Experts believe the earthworms of Rum flourished because of a lack of predators and rich soil.

How Dave got to be such a size in Cheshire - three times longer and more than five times heavier than an average worm - remains a mystery.

Ms Sherlock said: "With worms this size they must have an incredibly fertile and well-drained veg plot with decaying matter quickly recycled back into the soil. Earthworms are incredibly important to keep soils healthy."

She added: "I look forward to seeing if anyone can find an even bigger example by taking part in the Earthworm Watch survey this autumn."

Earthworm Watch is a survey of earthworms and soil quality run by the Natural History Museum and the Earthwatch Institute in association with the Earthworm Society of Britain.

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