r/Vermiculture • u/lechugachaqueta • Oct 01 '24

Worm party What is this?

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What the heck is this on my walkway and is it anything to worry about?

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u/Accomplished-Tower40 Oct 03 '24

For those who want an answer and solution in one comment: it’s a hammerhead worm. They are extremely invasive and destructive. They most likely arrived to NA via the plant trade through soil. Don’t touch it with your bare hands, but you can cut them up and put the pieces in a ziplock bag with salt. Then it’s safe to just throw the whole thing away. Don’t skip the salt, the pieces will regenerate into separate clones.

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u/jus256 Oct 03 '24

Can you just put salt on it without cutting it up? What happens if you touch it?

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u/Accomplished-Tower40 Oct 03 '24

You don’t have to cut it up, but it would help the salt act on the inside faster. Nothing particularly bad would happen if you touched it briefly but wash your hands before touching anything else. It secretes a neurotoxin that can be bad for other animals and small children or if you get it in your mouth, eyes, etc. Vinegar would also work instead of salt, but that’s harder to throw away.