“…Of course, scientists have since learned something about Earth’s epidermis. They have

“…Of course, scientists have since learned something about Earth’s epidermis. They have classified thousands of soil types by their mineral compositions and now know that soils are full of bacteria, fungi, protozoans, nematodes, insects, and the random mole, gopher tortoise, or burrowing owl.But less well understood is how soils are processed and remodeled by an often-overlooked subterranean chemical engineer: the earthworm. Researchers are still trying to fully understand the outsized role earthworms play in the global cycling of carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, organic matter, and metals. In some cases, it’s for the better, but in others, it’s for the worse. And either way, that role is growing as earthworms slowly repopulate the northern regions of the planet from which they were long absent.” -- source link

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