He counted
no less than 45 dead worms in one place in a length of sixteen
paces. From the facts above given, it is not probable that these
worms could have been drowned, and if they had been drowned they
would have perished in their burrows. I believe that they were
already sick, and that their deaths were merely hastened by the
ground being flooded.
It has often been said that under ordinary circumstances healthy
worms never, or very rarely, completely leave their burrows at
night; but this is an error, as White of Selborne long ago knew.
In the morning, after there has been heavy rain, the film of mud or
of very fine sand over gravel-walks is often plainly marked with
their tracks. I have noticed this from August to May, both months
included, and it probably occurs during the two remaining months of
the year when they are wet. On these occasions, very few dead
worms could anywhere be seen. On January 31, 1881, after a long-
continued and unusually severe frost with much snow, as soon as a
thaw set in, the walks were marked with innumerable tracks. On one
occasion, five tracks were counted crossing a space of only an inch
square. They could sometimes be traced either to or from the
mouths of the burrows in the gravel-walks, for distances between 2
or 3 up to 15 yards.
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