Eisenia andrei is a close relative of the 'brandling' or 'tiger' worm Eisenia fetida. Like E. fetida, it is epigeic, i.e. it prefers to live in compost or leaf litter rather than mineral soils.
| Eisenia andrei | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Annelida |
| Clade: | Pleistoannelida |
| Clade: | Sedentaria |
| Class: | Clitellata |
| Order: | Opisthopora |
| Family: | Lumbricidae |
| Genus: | Eisenia |
| Species: | E. andrei
|
| Binomial name | |
| Eisenia andrei Bouché, 1972 [1]
| |
| Synonyms | |
| |
It can be distinguished from E. fetida as it is darker in colour, and the characteristic stripes are less pronounced. Although its status as a separate species was fully confirmed in the mid-1980s by molecular analyses (based on electrophoresis of protein isoforms), E. andrei is still often misidentified and confused with E. fetida.[2] The muscles of the Eisenia andrei embryos appear in groups of at least two distinct muscles that cross the ventral midline and initially reach towards the lateral side of the embryo.[3] The two species are very similar morphologically in terms of their needs, general reproductive performances, and life cycles, however, E. andrei has a growth rate and cocoon production at a quicker rate than E. fetida due to its more advanced substrate nature.[4][5]
References
edit- ^ "Eisenia andrei". Fauna Europaea. 2007. Retrieved 2008-07-07.
- ^ Otomo, Laetitia Voua; Otomo, Patricks Voua; Bezuidenhout, Carlos C.; Maboeta, Mark S. (December 2013). "Molecular Assessment of Commercial and Laboratory Stocks of Eisenia Spp. (Oligochaeta: Lumbricidae) from South Africa". African Invertebrates. 54 (2): 499–511. doi:10.5733/afin.054.0220. hdl:10520/EJC146905. S2CID 55707661.
- ^ Hunnekuhl, Vera S.; Bergter, Annette; Purschke, Günter; Paululat, Achim (September 2009). "Development and embryonic pattern of body wall musculature in the crassiclitellate Eisenia andrei (Annelida, Clitellata)". Journal of Morphology. 270 (9): 1122–1136. doi:10.1002/jmor.10749. PMID 19378268. S2CID 33637129.
- ^ Domínguez, Velando, Ferreiro, J., A., A. (2005). "Are Eisenia fetida (Savigny, 1826) and Eisenia andrei (Oligochaeta, Lumbricidae) different biological species?" (Pedobiologia, 49(1)): 81–87. doi:10.1016/j.pedobi.2004.08.005.
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Reinecke, Viljoen, A.J., S.A (1991). "A comparison of the biology of Eisenia fetida and Eisenia andrei (Oligochaeta)" (Biol Fertil Soils 11): 295–300. doi:10.1016/j.pedobi.2004.08.005.
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