RECORD: Darwin, C. R. 1880. [Earthworm research notes]. CUL-DAR64.1.50. Edited by John van Wyhe (The Complete Work of Charles Darwin Online, http://darwin-online.org.uk/)
REVISION HISTORY: Transcribed and edited by John van Wyhe 7.2025. RN1
NOTE: See record in the Darwin Online manuscript catalogue, enter its Identifier here. Reproduced with permission of the Syndics of Cambridge University Library and William Huxley Darwin. The volume CUL-DAR64.1 contains material for Earthworms, experiments on worms; different locales & photographs and cuttings from journals. All of the textual items in these folders, including this one, have been transcribed in a single file: CUL-DAR63-65.
50
Oct 3d 80
ordinarily worms do not leave altogether holes (except sick ones) but there have been some walk of dry weather & yesterday there were torrents of rain, & early this morning the walks wherever part allowed of tracks being left, were covered almost everywhere by tracks; so that 5 tracks crossed space of about one inch square — no dead worms about — They sometimes spread & stock new places — (I must comment what I have said at Abinger & that the now migration to a space where the whole of the humus had been removed)
Farrer says something about tracks & I speak of them at border of trench.
50v
Judging from perfection of tracks they must have been made during [line illeg]
Oct 7th last night being warm rain & this morning — many tracks not so many as in 3d, observed in all places
Oct 10 Very heavy rain last night some tracks, I traced & observed for 15 yards along walk
Worms seem to suspect the epidemic when hundreds may be seen dead on the surface
Citation: John van Wyhe, ed. 2002-. The Complete Work of Charles Darwin Online. (http://darwin-online.org.uk/)
File last updated 7 July, 2025