Study: Earthworms could make climate change worse

This transcript is automatically generated

Marvin -- and worms yes you heard me right.

There's a new report that suggests a big explosion in the population of earth worms.

May be a major factor in global warming.

Apparently the -- little critters can't get enough of each other.

And they are releasing a lot of carbon in the process.

Trace Gallagher is an expert in earthworm mating and he is live in our West Coast -- -- interest.

C'mon ambassador -- LA this is serious stuff right -- the -- done from the US Netherlands and Columbia and they call this the earth worm dilemma.

And catchy name right.

And they're saying yes indeed that earthworms are responsible for climate change or at least partly and here's why turns -- earthworms are multiplying as you said -- Like crazy no -- sure why maybe don't have TV.

But the number of earthworms in -- determines how much greenhouse gases the -- releases.

Into the atmosphere that's because bacteria earthworms produce nitrous oxide.

The nitrous oxide levels in soil that's infested with earthworms.

Is three times higher than the nitrous oxide levels in soil that has no earth worms.

And carbon dioxide levels from soil with earth -- is 33%.

Higher than that without so.

Huge sections of North American for a soils are now infested with earthworms.

And 20% of all greenhouse gases come from the soil.

Right the worms also fertilize the soil so that's good thing for all those who want to gross stuff and if there's any good news in all of this I mean really.

It's that nitrous oxide that they produce is also known as laughing gas so if you're kinda get a chuckle out of this story maybe.

And that's why.

You see lots of -- giggling.

What antidote to this how do we get the earth warms me less Randy.

I don't know birth control and the.

That's the whole thing is nobody's quite sure why this is happening in and they're just being left alone.

And -- you know there are a lot of environmental and say deforestation is causing a lot of this but.

But the truth is nobody's quite sure and they really are just finding out that this is happening so more studies will.

Go into exactly -- it's we can do to try and mitigate this to some extent.

-- natural overlook an earth from the -- again.

Or a president Barry White as much as we have in the past.

Twenty minutes.

Thanks so lustrous.

Sure.

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Study: Earthworms could make climate change worse

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