Eisenia foetida

Eisenia foetida--this is apparently what I am breeding in my house. Last year, I purchased a 1/2lb of red wiggler worms to start indoor composting (or, if you want to be fancy, vermicomposting). I was successful till about Christmas, and then they all died. Combination of lack of "food" and lack of moisture, I think.

So I spent another $35 and bought another 1/2lb of worms, determined not to kill these ones off! I was worried for a while, because I am only one person, and I don't put out a lot of compostable waste on my own. Every now and then I can nab an apple core or banana peel or coffee grinds from a friend or coworker. But apparently I am feeding them enough, because for the first time, I crumbled one of the newly created dirt clumps to find lots of teeny little baby wrigglers! What a happy surprise!

Of course, if I get too many worms, I will not be able to sustain their dietary requirements, even with the help of friends. My mother and one of my coworkers has already asked for me to give them some worms when I start getting copious amounts, so that could very well be sooner rather than later!

Anyway, here's a picture of one of the little cuties. Don't be fooled; I used my macro lens on this guy. In reality, he's only about 3-4mm long, and maybe 1/2mm wide. And poor guy. These worms are light sensitive, and I took about five photos, all using my flash, which means I probably blinded him.

...I wonder how long it takes to get them to full size...?