Finding compost worms 
in your country?

Finding compost worms in your country might be the cheapest and quickest way to start a worm farm and recycle food 

waste and other organic materials that are 

produced in your home. There are several thousand different kinds of earthworms living all over the world but only a few species can actually be used for worm composting.

The worms that I mention below are known by many different names in different parts of the world so it is best to try to identify them by their scientific names which are the same everywhere.

The worms that are suited for worm composting are:

• "Eisenia fetida"             - The Compost worm
• "Lumbricus terrestris"   - The Northern Nightcrawler
• "Eudrillus eugenie"       - The African Nightcrawler
• "Eisenia hortensis"       - The European Nightcrawler 
•  "Dendrobaena veneta" -  European Nightcrawler and
• "Lumbricus Rubellus"    - Red worm

Compost worms enjoy feeding on rich organic materials can be kept in captivity and multiply quickly. The above mentioned worm species are used to recycle organic waste by many commercial worm farmers as well as worm composting hobbyists all over the world. They all have  slightly different requirements to their surroundings when kept in worm bins and you should look into their specific needs and preferences before you head out to search for your starter population. The page Starting a worm business without buying worms will explain more about the different types of compost worms.   

Finding compost worms

Finding compost worms is not very difficult if they are established in your country and the environment and climate are matching their requirements. With the exception of the African Nightcrawler that is native to 

West Africa the other compost worms mentioned in this article have originated in Europe or North America. The earthworms have however been introduced onto all continents except Antarctica. Unfortunately there are still many countries where you won't be finding compost worms no matter how hard you search. Worms are generally pretty hard creatures but can not survive extreme heat or cold temperatures.

On this page we will show you in which countries compost worms occur naturally. Should you have any additional information about earthworm populations in your country or any other we would be grateful to hear from you so we can update this page.

Compost worm occurrences around the world

Eisenia Fetida

Eisenia fetida is the most used compost worm worldwide

Albania, Algeria, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, French Guiana, Georgia, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Greenland, Guatemala, Hungary, Iceland, India, Iran, Italy, Jordan, Lituania, Madeira, Morocco, New Zealand, Netherlands,  Nicaragua, Norway, Poland, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Zimbabwe,

Lumbricus terrestris

Algeria, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, 
Canada, Denmark, Egypt, Finland, France, Germany, Grat Britain, Greenland, Hungary, Iceland, Luxemburg, Madeira, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, United States, Uruguay,

Eudrillus eugenie

Belize, Denmark, French Guiana, Guyana, Honduras, Madagaskar, Panama, South Africa, Surinam, United States, 

Eisenia hortensis / Dendrobaena veneta

Denmark, France, Georgia, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Iran, Jordan, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United States, 

Lumbricus rubellus

Algeria, Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Bolivia, Bulgaria, Canada, 

Chile, Colombia, Denmark, Eire, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Great Britain, Greenland, Iceland, Latvia, Madeira, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United States

For more worm compost related information!

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