Giant Palouse Earthworm (Driloleirus americanus







Driloleirus americanus is a large, pinkish-white earthworm as much as 3 feet long, said to smell like lilies when handled. Threatened by habitat loss (Palouse bunchgrass prairie) and non-native worm species. The worms' burrows are as deep as 15 feet. They were reportedly abundant in the late 1800's around the Palouse.

May 20, 2015
Cass Davis of Latah County discovered what he believes are three specimens of the extremely rare Giant Palouse Earthworm. The finding occurred over the past weekend on Paradise Ridge.

"I submitted two specimens to the University of Idaho from Paradise Ridge in 2012," said Cass Davis. "Since then, I have been searching for more but have been unsuccessful, until the other day. I'm very confident that these three new specimens are also the rare Giant Palouse Earthworm."

The Giant Palouse Earthworm was considered by some scientists to be extinct until a 2005 discovery by a University of Idaho graduate student in Albion, WA. In 2010, another university graduate student, along with a research support scientist, found two more worms that were eventually confirmed.

"It's really cool that potentially a few more Giant Palouse Earthworms have been found on the ground surface here in the Palouse," stated David Hall of the Palouse Prairie Foundation. "It is important to preserve the habitat in which they live. There are probably very few left, and they may have an important role in production of the great soils we have here."

The native Palouse Prairie is recognized as one of the most endangered ecosystems in the United States. There is less than 1% of native prairie remaining.

"These giant earthworm specimens provide additional evidence concerning the importance and uniqueness of Paradise Ridge and the Palouse region," said Tim Hatten with the Moscow-based Invertebrate Ecology. "Whether it's rare plants, rare worms or native pollinators, they are all important pieces to what's left of the Palouse Prairie and they deserve protection."

The Giant Palouse Earthworm is native to the Palouse region and is one of the few native worms in all of America. After receiving a petition by conservationists to list the worm under the Endangered Species Act, the US Fish & Wildlife Service ruled in 2009 that there was not sufficient data to warrant listing.

"After the Palouse Prairie was reduced to wheat and lentil fields at the beginning of the 20th century, there have only been about a dozen Giant Palouse Earthworms found by scientists and volunteers," said Steve Paulson of Friends of the Clearwater. "It is time to protect the Giant Palouse Earthworm. Failing to protect the worm would be the equivalent of throwing away our heritage."


Photo by Henry Moore Jr.

Radio coverage from KRFP: Evening Report – Mon., May 18, 2016 – Giant Palouse Earthworms Found
April 12, 2012
Several Giant Palouse Earthworms found on a road on Paradise Ridge.
July 26, 2011
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants: 12-Month Finding on Petition to List Giant Palouse Earthworm (Drilolerius americanus) -- not warranted
DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR Fish and Wildlife Service. 50 CFR Part 17; Docket No. FWS-R1-ES-2010-0023; MO 92210-0-008-B2

Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants; 12-Month Finding on a Petition To List the Giant Palouse Earthworm (Drilolerius americanus) as Threatened or Endangered

AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of 12-month petition finding.

SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 12-month finding on a petition to list the giant Palouse earthworm (Driloleirus americanus) as threatened or endangered as petitioned, and to designate critical habitat under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). After review of all available scientific and commercial information, we find that listing the giant Palouse earthworm is not warranted at this time. However, we ask the public to submit to us any new information that becomes available concerning the threats to the giant Palouse earthworm or its habitat at any time.

DATES: The finding announced in this document was made on July 26, 2011.

Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 143 / Tuesday, July 26, 2011 / Proposed Rules 44547-44564
July 25, 2011
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service press release: Giant Palouse Earthworm Not Warranted for ESA Protections

July 19, 2010
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants:
90-Day Finding on a Petition to List the Giant Palouse Earthworm (Driloleirus americanus) as Threatened or Endangered -- Substantial
Docket ID: FWS-R1-ES-2010-0023
SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 90-day finding on a petition to list the giant Palouse earthworm (Driloleirus americanus) as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended, (Act) and to designate critical habitat. Based on our review, we find that the petition presents substantial scientific or commercial information indicating that listing the giant Palouse earthworm as threatened or endangered may be warranted. Therefore, with the publication of this notice, we are initiating a review of the status of the species to determine if listing the giant Palouse earthworm is warranted. To ensure that this status review is comprehensive, we are requesting scientific and commercial data and other information regarding this species. Based on the status review, we will issue a 12-month finding on the petition, which will address whether the petitioned action is warranted, as provided in section 4(b)(3)(B) of the Act.
DATES: To allow us adequate time to conduct this review, we request that we receive information on or before September 20, 2010.

Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 138 / Tuesday, July 20, 2010 / Proposed Rules 42059-42066

June 14, 2010
Memorandum for: PALOUSE PRAIRIE FUNDATION [sic] V. KEN SALAZAR, No. 09-35294
Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Washington Fred L. Van Sickle, District Judge, Presiding Argued and Submitted February 3, 2010 Seattle, Washington
Petitioners-Appellants petitioned the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to list the giant Palouse earthworm as an endangered or threatened species. The Service issued a negative 90-day finding that rejected the petition, concluding that there was insufficient evidence to indicate that the earthworm may be threatened. Petitioner-Appellants brought suit in the Eastern District of Washington, claiming that the Service applied the wrong standard in its 90-day finding. The district court granted summary judgment to the Service. We affirm the district court.
www.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/memoranda/2010/06/14/09-35294.pdf

March 27, 2010
University of Idaho researchers located an adult and a juvenile specimen. The adult has been positively identified as a giant Palouse earthworm. www.spokesman.com/stories/2010/apr/28/native-giant-earthworms-are-big-find-for/

Giant Palouse Earthworm -- The Fight For Survival; Round Two (from Friends of the Clearwater's Clearwater Defender newsletter).
In this corner, weighing five ounces and standing 24 inches tall is the Giant Palouse Earthworm (Driloleirus americanus); and in the far corner stands the combined weight and resources of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Department of the Interior, the Department of Justice, the Department of Agriculture, the Obama administration, the states of Idaho and Washington, and the resource extraction industries. ...

February 3, 2010
Arguments before United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, William Fletcher and Johnnie B. Rawlinson, Circuit Judges, and Arthur Lawrence Alarcón, Senior Circuit Judge. Attorneys John Buse and John Arbab.
June 30, 2009
Petition to List the Giant Palouse Earthworm (Driloleirus americanus) as a Threatened or Endangered Species Under the Endangered Species Act — Center for Biological Diversity, Friends of the Clearwater, Palouse Audubon, Palouse Prairie Foundation, Palouse Group of the Sierra Club

Conservation Groups Again Petition to List Giant Palouse Earthworm as an Endangered Species [press release]
Rare, Lily-smelling Earthworm Has Been Seen Only Four Times in Past 110 Years

PORTLAND, Oreg. – Friends of the Clearwater, Center for Biological Diversity, Palouse Prairie Foundation, Palouse Audubon and Palouse Group of Sierra Club filed a petition today with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service requesting that the agency protect the giant Palouse earthworm as an endangered species. The earthworm has been found only four times in the past 110 years, including in 2005, and is immediately threatened by agriculture, urban sprawl, and invasive earthworms.

"The giant Palouse earthworm is critically endangered and needs the protection of the Endangered Species Act to have any chance of survival,? said Noah Greenwald, biodiversity program director at the Center for Biological Diversity. ?Sometimes reaching three feet in length, white in color, and reportedly possessing a unique lily smell, the giant Palouse earthworm is found only in eastern Washington and northern Idaho and would be a tragedy to lose."

Under the Bush administration, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rejected a previous petition from the groups to protect the earthworm, arguing that there was not enough information about the species. This move was typical of the administration, which adamantly opposed protecting species under the Endangered Species Act. Indeed, the administration protected only 62 species in eight years, compared to 522 species protected under the Clinton administration. In submitting the new petition, the groups provided additional information demonstrating the extreme rarity of, and severe threats to, the species.

"The giant Palouse earthworm has lost the vast majority of its habitat to agriculture and urban sprawl," said Steve Paulson with Friends of the Clearwater. ?Indeed, the Palouse Prairie, which comprises much of the earthworm?s presumed range, is considered one of the most endangered ecosystems in the U.S., with less than two percent remaining in a native state.?

Sightings of the earthworm have all been in areas with native vegetation in the Palouse prairie region of eastern Washington and northern Idaho or around Ellensburg, Washington. The earthworm appears to need moist soils with native vegetation. Recent surveys of both native habitat and former agriculture areas found only introduced earthworms, with one exception: In 2005, a researcher from the University of Idaho found a single giant Palouse earthworm in an area of native vegetation near Moscow, Idaho.


Emily Smart's class designed and printed T-shirts as a fund-raising effort.


February 3, 2009
Oral arguments before United States District Court, Eastern District of Washington, Spokane, No. CV-08-032-FVS, before Fred Van Sickle, Senior United States District Judge
October 9, 2007
Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants;
90-Day Finding on a Petition To List the Giant Palouse Earthworm as Threatened or Endangered -- not substantial
AGENCY: Fish and Wildlife Service, Interior.

ACTION: Notice of 90-day petition finding.

SUMMARY: We, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), announce a 90-day finding on a petition to list the giant Palouse earthworm (Driloleirus americanus) as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended. We find that the petition does not provide substantial scientific or commercial information to indicate that listing the giant Palouse earthworm may be warranted. Therefore, we will not be initiating a status review in response to this petition. However, we encourage the public to submit to us any new information that becomes available concerning this species.
...
Species Information
The giant Palouse earthworm was first described by Frank Smith in 1897 after he discovered it near Pullman, Washington: "* * * this species is very abundant in that region of the country and their burrows are sometimes seen extending to a depth of over 15 feet."
...
Population Status
The petition stated that since the initial description of the giant Palouse earthworm, sightings have been extremely infrequent. In 2005, a University of Idaho graduate student conducting soil samples was the first person in nearly two decades to report a sighting of this earthworm (University of Idaho 2006, p. 1). Prior to this sighting, two specimens were collected in 1988 by University of Idaho researchers studying pill beetles in a forest clearing. A specimen was also collected by Fender in 1978 (Fender 1985, pp. 93--132). An indication of the species? rarity is documented by Fauci and Bezdicek (2002, pp. 257--260); they surveyed earthworms at 46 sites in the Palouse bioregion without one collection of the giant Palouse earthworm.

50 CFR Part 17 -- Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 194 / Tuesday, October 9, 2007 / Proposed Rules 57273-57276

October 9, 2007
Petition Seeking ESA Protection for the Giant Palouse Earthworm Does Not Establish Need for Listing (U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service news release)
August 27, 2007
Sixty-day Notice of Intent to Sue for Failure to Respond to Petition to List the Giant Palouse Earthworm (Driloleirus americanus) as Endangered and Failure to Issue a 12-Month Finding
This letter provides you with 60 days notice that the Center for Biological Diversity, the Palouse Prairie Foundation, the Palouse Audubon Society, the Friends of the Clearwater, Steve Paulson, David Hall and O. Lynne Nelson ("Petitioners") intend to sue the U.S. Department of the Interior, the Secretary of the Interior and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (collectively "the Service") for violating Section 4 of the Endangered Species Act ("ESA"), 16 U.S.C. § 1533, and its implementing regulations, in failing to issue a 90-day finding or a 12-month finding regarding Petitioners? petition requesting threatened or endangered listing for the Giant Palouse Earthworm (Driloleirus americanus). This letter is issued pursuant to the 60-day notice requirement of the citizen suit provision of the ESA. 16 U.S.C. § 1540(g).
...
Notice of Intent [40 KB PDF, 3 pages]

October 2, 2006
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Response to 'Petition to List Driloleirus americanus as a Threatened or Endangered Species Pursuant to the Endangered Species Act'

October 2, 2006

This letter responds to your petition dated August 18,2006, requesting the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service emergency list the giant Palouse earthworm (Driloleirus americanus) and list this species as threatened or endangered pursuant to the Endangered Species Act of 1973, as amended (Act). We received your petition on August 30, 2006. When reviewing a petition, we must make an initial finding on whether the petition to add a species to the endangered species list presents substantial information indicating the requested action may be warranted. Section 4(b)(3)(A) of the Act requires, to the maximum extent practicable, this finding be made within 90 days.

We reviewed your petition to issue an emergency rule to list the giant Palouse earthworm. Our assessment is that circumstances pertaining to the status of the species do not warrant emergency listing. If conditions change, and we determine emergency listing is warranted, an emergency rule will be developed.

We are currently required to complete a significant number of listing and critical habitat actions in Fiscal Year 2006, pursuant to court orders and judicially approved settlement agreements. Complying with these court orders, settlement agreements, and other priorities obligates all of our listing and critical habitat funding for Fiscal Year 2006. Therefore, while we are not able to further address your petition to list the giant Palouse earthworm as endangered or, alternatively, as threatened, we will address your petition as soon as funding becomes available.

If you have any questions concerning this matter, please contact Ms. Theresa Rabot, Assistant Regional Director - Ecological Services at 503-231-6151.

Sincerely,

/s/ David J. Wesley
Acting Regional Director
Letter re: Petition to List [319 KB PDF, 1 page]


August 18, 2006
Petition to List Driloleirus americanus as a Threatened or Endangered Species Pursuant to the Endangered Species Act
The petitioners hereby formally petition to list the Giant Palouse Earthworm (Driloleirus americanus) as a threatened or endangered species pursuant to the Endangered Species Act (hereafter referred to as ESA), 16 U.S.C. §1531 et seq. This petition is filed under 5 U.S.C. 553(e) and 50 CFR 424.14 (1990), which grants interested parties the right to petition for issue of a rule from the Secretary of Interior.

Petitioners also petition that critical habitat be designated for the Giant Palouse Earthworm concurrent with the listing, pursuant to 50 CFR 424.12, and pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act (5 U.S.C. 553).

The Giant Palouse Earthworm (Driloleirus americanus) is an endemic species of the Palouse bioregion that utilizes endangered Palouse prairie grassland habitat and nearby associated habitats. Habitat for this species has suffered extreme destruction and modification, due primarily to conversion of native grassland to non-native annual crops. Additionally, grazing, suburban and rural development, road construction and re-construction, and invasive species pose a threat to remaining degraded Palouse habitat and the species. Current and proposed management of the species either does not exist or is inadequate at the federal, state and local levels, to protect the species and its habitat. Without the designation of it as an Endangered Species, the Giant Palouse Earthworm faces an imminent threat to its continued existence in the Palouse bioregion.
Petition to List (with addendum) [1.3 MB PDF, 32 pages]
An earthworm specimen found in a Palouse Prairie remant near Pullman, WA, has been confirmed to be Driloleirus americanus, the giant Palouse earthworm.

University of Idaho graduate student Yaniria Sanchez-de Leon samples a Palouse Prairie remnant south of Moscow for earthworms. She found the rare giant Palouse earthworm at a different site north of Pullman, Wash.
Photo by Yaniria Sanchez-de Leon/University of Idaho © 2005

The large, white worm at the top is the giant Palouse earthworm, Driloleirus americanus. Below is the southern worm or Aporrectodea trapezoides, which is considered an introduced species.
Photo by Yaniria Sanchez-de Leon/University of Idaho © 2005

The anterior, ventral view of the giant Palouse earthworm specimen collected by Yaniria Sanchez-de Leon. The scale is in centimeters.
Photo by Yaniria Sanchez-de Leon/University of Idaho © 2005
Yaniria Sanchez-de Leon, Ph.D. candidate in Soil Science at UI, found the earthworm in the top 10cm of the soil on May 27, 2005 in Festuca-Symphoricarpos association vegetation.
Sanchez-de Leon found the wriggler in May while digging soil samples for her research on the effects of earthworms on soil carbon dynamics of the Palouse grasslands. She paused when her shovel unveiled part of the off-white body of the Driloleirus americanus.

"I was really excited because it was something different," she said. Its size and coloring are distinct from common species.

She extracted two pieces of the worm from her field site at Washington State University's Smoot Hill Ecological Preserve and took them back to her office for identification. They measured 6 inches together, much longer than a common European worm.

Moscow-Pullman Daily News, Kate Baldwin. 2006.02.07. "Rare giant Palouse worm find for UI student; months of waiting end in confirmation of unique discovery." 33204.htm.

Timeline


"The giant Palouse earthworm lives in dry, rolling hills of Eastern Washington. Both the earthworms and farmers treasure the same bunchgrass prairie with its deep, fertile soils ... which doesn't bode well for the giants. They have similar burrowing habits to their Oregon cousins [it lives near the surface when conditions are moist and tunnels as deep as 15 feet when times are dry], but have evolved to tolerate the typically drier conditions of the Palouse. Hopefully they're still there, despite the land disturbance and invasion of non-native worms."
[http://roguepundit.typepad.com/roguepundit/2005/05/random_nature_2.html]

Subject: RE: Palouse natural history notes (non-bird)
From: Kelly Cassidy
Date: Wed, 01 Feb 2006 14:02:27 -0800

I was absolutely thrilled to see the article in the Spokesman this morning about the earthworm and ESPECIALLY that it was found on Smoot Hill. WSU administration makes periodic moves in bad budget times to talk about selling Smoot Hill. Being the only known worm location in the last 25 years should take Smoot Hill off the table for the foreseeable future.

Kelly Cassidy

2 - a WSU grad student found one [of] the rare Giant Palouse Earthworms at Smoot Hill Preserve west of Pullman last year. The last confirmed specimen was found in 1978. The Palouse, like many areas, is now populated primarily by non-native worm species.
[http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/INNW.html#1138831354]

1.4.3.3 Other Species
An overview of the Palouse subbasin wouldn't be complete unless the Palouse giant earthworm was mentioned. When Frank Smith first unearthed this giant earthworm near Pullman in 1897, he named it Megascolides americanus, thinking that it was closely related to Australia's fifteen-foot worms (Megascolides australis). Although dwarfed by its Australian counterpart, the three-foot long Palouse is certainly a giant among worms. This species, really only distantly related to Megascolides, was renamed Driloleirus which means "lily-like worm," reflecting the flowery aroma that it emits when handled (PBI 2004a).

Since its initial discovery, very few other sightings of this species have been documented. The giant Palouse earthworms live in the deep, rich soils of the Palouse bunchgrass prairies. Thick layers of organic matter that have accumulated in the soils of the Palouse for hundreds of years sustain the giants during the wetter seasons. During summer droughts, the worms dig burrows as deep as fifteen feet, conserving water with specialized kidney-like organs. Farmers that arrived in eastern Washington prized the fertile Palouse soils, resulting in the almost complete destruction of the bunchgrass prairies that characterized this region by the late 1800's. The biggest threat to these elusive giants continues to be habitat destruction due to agriculture and development, but the introduction of the now widespread European earthworm has also helped to further the decline of our native Palouse worm. A documented sighting of this rare creature has not been recorded since 1978, when one was unearthed in the Palouse country of Washington State (PBI 2004).
[www.nwcouncil.org/fw/subbasinplanning/palouse/plan/Plan.pdf]
[http://www.pacificbio.org/ESIN/OtherInvertebrates/GiantPalouseEarthworm/GiantEarthworm.html]

References and Links (academic):


References and Links (magazines):


References and Links (newspapers and online):

  • Berger, Knute. Crosscut.com: News of the great nearby. August 09, 2011. How the Feds failed Washington's great white worm.
    The Feds deal a blow to the Giant Palouse Earthworm's endangered species status, partly because it appears to live on in far-flung habitats. Still, the mysteries of this ice-age survivor endure, and deepen.
    ...
    For decades, no live specimens of the large (reports of up to three-feet), white (not albino), lilly-scented [sic] (in dispute) earthworms were found, and recent finds have been major events, at least among scientists, worm experts, and Palouse preservationists. The great white worms are so rare that little is known about them: Where and how they live, breed, what they eat, what kinds of soils they require, etc. The dilemma is that unless more is known, it cannot be known whether or not they are endangered.
    ...
    The report turning down the GPE for listing is a fascinating document because it pulls together the state of knowledge about the worm, and emphasizes our lack of knowledge.
  • The Columbian. Vancouver, WA. September 8, 2006. Spokane, WA. Worm worthy of good turn. [559 words]
    It's 3 feet long, pinkish in color, smells like a lily and must be save from extinction, conservationists said Thursday in asking the federal government to protect the Giant Palouse Earthworm under the Endangered Species Act. ...
  • Lewiston Morning Tribune. Lewiston, ID. September 8, 2006. Eric Barker. Groups seek protection for giant worm -- Environmentalists want Giant Palouse Earthworm listed under the endangered species act. [603 words]
    A coalition of environmentalists want the government to protect the rare Giant Palouse Earthworm (Driloleirus americanus) under the Endangered Species Act. ...
  • The Deseret News. Salt Lake City, UT. May 29, 2006. Palouse, WA. John K. Wiley, The Associated Press. Discovery of giant worm thrills scientists. [814 words]
    also
    The Seattle Times. Seattle, WA. May 28, 2006. Palouse, WA. John K. Wiley, The Associated Press. Scientist digs up a rare giant Palouse earthworm -- They can grow to 3 feet; Pale white worms have been found only 4 times since the 1970s. [421 words]
    also
    The Columbian. Vancouver, WA. May 27, 2006. Palouse, WA. John K. Wiley, The Associated Press. Giant worm re-emerges. [621 words]
    Pity the robin that latches onto one of these worms. A yard long and as big around as a man's pinkie finger, the giant Palouse eathworm is albino-pale, can burrow 15 feet deep and smells like a lily. ...
  • The Spokesman Review. Spokane, WA. May 11, 2006. James Hagengruber, Staff writer. Team hopes to find another rare worm -- chances dim as prairie habitat dwindles. [1089 words]
    The search for the big white worm began Wednesday morning with a hourney in a big white van. The van carried assorted soil scientists, entomologists and the Northwest's leading worm expert to one of the few remaining patches of virgin Palouse prairie. ...
  • Moscow-Pullman Daily News. Moscow, ID. February 7, 2006. Kate Baldwin. Rare giant Palouse worm find for UI student; months of waiting end in confirmation of unique discovery. [33204.htm] <www.dnews.com>
    ... Sanchez-de Leon found the wriggler in May while digging soil samples for her research on the effects of earthworms on soil carbon dynamics of the Palouse grasslands. She paused when her shovel unveiled part of the off-white body of the Driloleirus americanus. ...
  • The Spokesman Review. Spokane, WA. February 1, 2006. James Hagengruber, Staff writer. Turn of the shovel turns up rare Giant Palouse Earthworm. [926 words]
    It was at the end of a long day of worm research when University of Idaho graduate student Yaniria SAnchez-de Leon dug into the prairie soil and spotted the quick flash of white skin. ...
  • Lewiston Morning Tribune. Lewiston, ID. April 9, 2001. Portland, OR. Michael Milstein of The Oregonian. Oregon biologists dig for great white worm. p. 9A. [1280 words] and
    The Oregonian. Portland, OR. April 9, 2001. Michael Milstein of The Oregonian. Chasing a giant of the past -- the hunt for the great, white worm. [1399 words]
    [Driloleirus macelfreshi]
    In the drizzly woods beside Interstate 5 south of Portland, William Fender digs for a legend. Three feet long. White. Lily-scented spit. An earthworm. The Oregon giant earthworm: Driloleirus macelfreshi. Settlers who first plowed up the grasslands that once carpeted the Willamette Valley sometimes unearthed the writhers and mistook them for snakes. Now those grasslands are gone. And the indigenous Oregon giant, last seen in 1983, may have disappeared for good. ...
  • The Spokesman-Review. Spokane, WA. November 26, 1999. The County Lines.
    Article ID: 9911260075. [704 words] <www.spokesmanreview.com>
    Friday a team of 15 first- through third-graders led by soil scientists went searching for a specific type of earthworm. ...
  • The Columbian. Vancouver, WA. August 22, 1999. Pullman, WA. The Associated Press. Kids seek legendary earthworm. [452 words] <www.columbian.com>
    also
    Moscow-Pullman Daily News. Moscow, ID. August 1999. Pullman, WA. The Associated Press. Unearthing a legendary worm: kids are digging this lesson in science as they search for 'Palouse monster.'
    This worm is the stuff legends are made of. Big as a snake. Smells like a lily. Not seen in two decades. It could be the Palouse Monster. ...

  • The Spokesman Review. Spokane, WA. November 20, 1999. Andrea Vogt, staff writer. Giant worm still missing, but lesson not lost on kids: Science a never-ending search, especially when you're 6. Article ID: 9911200051. [848 words]
    It's a foot and a half long, smells like a lily and it's out there, somewhere. WSU soil scientists led 15 first-, second- and third-graders on an expedition Friday in search of the legendary giant Palouse earthworm. Discovered in 1897, the elusive native wriggler hasn't been seen since 1976. Despite valiant efforts Friday, it remains underground. Westin Hill pulled his spade from the overturned Palouse prairie and peered down into the black earth. "Oh my goodness, oh... I found a really big hole." ...
  • Lewiston Morning Tribune. Lewiston, ID. November 20, 2006. Rebecca Boone. Worming their way into history -- Moscow students go in search of Palouse's fabled giant worm. [1085 words]
    Armed with shovels, magnifying glasses and lunch boxes, a team of hunters sought an unusual quarry Friday morning -- giant earthworms close to half as big as the hunters themselves. Of course, most of the hunters were only about 3 1/2-feet tall. ...
  • Lewiston Morning Tribune. Lewiston, ID. November 16, 2006. Pullman, WA. Erin Walter. Kids go in search of giant worm -- Moscow students on trail of legendary Palouse crawler. [619 words]
    Think of the fish you could hook -- that is, if you could find one. ...
  • The Seattle Times. Seattle, WA. November 9, 1999. Pullman, WA. ERIC SORENSEN; SEATTLE TIMES SCIENCE REPORTER. Digging up a wiggly giant -- School children and WSU scientists go in search of a rare worm, a cousin of the world's largest, that hasn't been seen in its native Palouse in decades. [1579 words]
    Any day now, the fall rains will wash in earnest across the rounded mounds of the Palouse. The summer-baked soil will drink deep, and as the water works its way into the soft earth, strange stirrings will begin. ...

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ECOS Species Profile for Giant Palouse earthworm (Driloleirus americanus)

NatureServe Explorer Driloleirus americanus report

Center for Biological Diversity Giant Palouse Earthworm page

Palouse Prairie Foundation | P.O. Box 8952 | Moscow, ID 83843
palouseprairie.org