Scrutable

plodder wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 29, 2020 4:30 pm

however many caterpillars are fluffy.

plodder wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 29, 2020 4:30 pm

but butterflies are smooth.

plodder wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 29, 2020 5:11 pm

is it the fat? would a skinny worm be fluffy? is it the wet? would a dry worm be fluffy? ducks get wet, and they’re fat. and very, very fluffy.

dyqik wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 29, 2020 5:14 pm

plodder wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 29, 2020 5:11 pm

is it the fat? would a skinny worm be fluffy? is it the wet? would a dry worm be fluffy? ducks get wet, and they’re fat. and very, very fluffy.

Temperatures are pretty stable underground, and worms burrow down below the frost line.

plodder wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 29, 2020 5:16 pm

dyqik wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 29, 2020 5:14 pm

plodder wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 29, 2020 5:11 pm

is it the fat? would a skinny worm be fluffy? is it the wet? would a dry worm be fluffy? ducks get wet, and they’re fat. and very, very fluffy.

Temperatures are pretty stable underground, and worms burrow down below the frost line.

wrong

https://www.growingagreenerworld.com/do ... ve-winter/

Other earthworms, such as the common night crawler can survive winter conditions by burrowing deep into the soil, below the frost line (the level below the soil surface in which groundwater freezes). That distance varies based on different parts of the county, ranging from zero to six feet in the coldest regions. Yet safely below the frost line, they live out the winter in small cavities or chambers.

lpm wrote: ↑

Wed Jan 29, 2020 7:03 pm

Worms are weird in America. They were eradicated by ice sheets. Pre-Columbian native worms were spreading steadily northwards since the end of the ice ages, but didn't get that far, relatively. Then along came Europeans who brought loads of UK/European earthworms to random places along the east coast.

How? In barrels. The volume of tobacco being shipped out was enormous and returning ships brought the barrels back loaded with earth and rubble for ballast. Plus they arrived in root balls. Without native earthworms as competition, the invasive worms spread out from these east coast locations.

And they also fly to new locations. How? They are used as bait by fishermen, so are now carried very long distances in cars, and zooming along above ground for miles must seem like flying for worms. Some manage to escape their captors. They also hitchhike on muddy vehicles, particularly in forests where logging is taking place. As a result, worms can be said to be great travellers across continents.

There are still places in the US and Canada without any earthworms and they are trying to prevent their arrival. I think Asian earthworms have now invaded as well.