Sweetwater – The first sighting of hammerhead worms – an invasive flatworm from Southeast Asia that preys on beneficial earthworms and could be called the kudzu of insects – has been identified in Graham County.
Kenneth Brooms has found more than 150 worms in his garden in the 4200 block of Sweetwater Road over the past four months.
“I can’t be the only one,” Brooms said. “It’s an epidemic at my place.”
But Randy Collins, Graham County extension director and agriculture agent at the N.C. Cooperative Extension office in Robbinsville, said Brooms has been the only one with the problem in Graham County – so far.
There’s nothing good to say about hammerhead worms, which prey on a beneficial insect (earthworms, which are important for soil health), they are poisonous (they can make animals sick if they eat them), they are painful when touched and if you slice one up, new ones will emerge from each segment.
Hammerhead worms have been a problem in other states for years and have been observed in North Carolina since 1951, mainly in the east.
But numerous sightings farther west have been reported in online posts, including Burke County (just east of Asheville), where the N.C. Cooperative Extension agent blogged about sightings there.
“For the past couple of weeks the Extension Office has received numerous calls about the hammerhead worm (Bipalium kewense),” Extension Agent Donna Teasley wrote in a blog posted in June. “It isn’t new or dangerous, but it does look alarming in a horror movie sort of way.”
She said hammerhead worms are one of several flatworm or terrestrial worms that inhabit North Carolina. It is called “hammerhead” because of its large, hammer-shaped head.
They can grow up to a skinny 12 inches with five black stripes running down their bodies and a broken collar around the neck of the worm. They live in dark, moist places such as under rocks, in leaf litter or under flower pots. Their spread in North Carolina is attributed to the movement of houseplants and soils that come from tropical regions.
They are active at most times of the year and are fiercely predatory, feeding on earthworms, snail, slugs and other insects, Teasley wrote. They wrap themselves around their prey and suck the liquid parts of their victim into their mouth that is located about midway down the underside of the body.
Hammerhead worms are hermaphrodites, which means they have both male and female sexual organs. They reproduce by either mating and laying cocoon-filled eggs or by simply breaking apart and making two worms.
“Their rapidly increasing numbers in some areas is likely caused by their ability to regrow from half a worm,” she wrote. “While it is possible that the earthworm population could be decreased by the hammerhead worm, earthworm production operations are more susceptible to damage,” she wrote.
If these worms are found on your property, carefully collect them and drop them in alcohol. It is suggested that gloves be worn due to some slightly poisonous properties that might exist in the worm. Always wash your hands with warm, soapy water after handling.
She advised to not be overly alarmed by the presence of hammerhead worms in your yard.
“Chances are they have been there for some time but due to the very rainy weather that we have experienced this spring, they are simply looking for some high ground and are being spotted on sidewalks and driveways,” she wrote.