identifying & recording earthworms workshop

This 3-day training course incorporates everything you need to know to be able to accurately identify and record earthworm species.

With a mix of classroom presentations, laboratory-based sessions, and field-based activities our earthworm specialists will guide you through the lifestyles, ecology, and morphology of UK earthworms.

Attendees will get detailed information on sampling equipment and techniques with hands-on opportunities to collect live specimens. You'll use preserved specimens from our tutors’ teaching collection for identification using microscopes, and our tutors will demonstrate best-practices for curation of a reference collection.

What to expect:

• A copy of the Key to the Earthworms of the UK & Ireland to use during the course and take home afterwards.
• Certificate upon course completion.
• Access to microscopes, specimen collection, lab equipment, field equipment and identification resources.
• Tuition from tutors specialising in earthworms.
• Please note that this course will involve using specimens that have been killed and preserved.

By the end of this course, you will:

• have a grounding in Britain’s earthworm classification and ecology
• be able to use external (morphological) features for specimen identification
• have used various collecting techniques for a variety of habitats and species
• gain practical experience using field guides and identification keys to determine specimens accurately to species-level
• gain practical experience observing invertebrate ID features using a microscope
• know how to curate your own personal reference collection
• be given guidance on how to take your interest further and contribute associated recording schemes

What to know before booking; 

• This event takes place at Cultra Manor in the grounds of Ulster Folk Museum. 
• Please be advised that this is a 3-day training course and participants must be willing to commit to all three days to take part (April 7, 8 and 9).
• £50 ticket (inclusive all 3 days).
• All levels of species identification experience are welcome. 
• Suitable clothing and footwear for outdoor fieldwork is essential.
• Please consider bringing along sunscreen, a hat, water, and any earthworm ID guides you have on hand.
• Please bring a packed lunch as we will be out in the field most of the days.
• This course is aimed at adults only and course attendees must be at least 18 years old in order to attend.

Earthworm Specialist: Keiron Derek Brown

Keiron has been involved with a range of invertebrate projects across the UK, including designing and managing the BioLinks project for the Field Studies Council. In 2023, he set up the Biological Recording Company, where he highlights invertebrate research through the entoLIVE series and runs a wide range of invertebrate courses and events. In his spare time, he is an Entomology Chair of the London Natural History Society and is the National Recorder for Earthworms.

Earthworm Specialist: Emma Sherlock

Emma is the Senior Curator of Free-living Worms at the Natural History Museum, London. Although she curates numerous phyla of worms at the museum, her main research area is earthworms. She has published over 20 scientific papers and is the author of the FSC AIDGAP Key to the Earthworms of the UK & Ireland. She has currently described 8 new earthworm species to science (from Nicaragua, Belize and Cameroon) and participates in fieldwork both throughout the UK and abroad (Nicaragua, Vietnam, Hungary, Romania and France). Emma was one of the founders of the Earthworm Society of Britain back in 2009 and is currently the Chair of the Society.

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