Kinabalu giant earthworm
Encyclopedia
The Kinabalu giant earthworm, Pheretima darnleiensis, is a grey-blue coloured peregrine annelid
native to Mount Kinabalu
, Borneo
and surrounding islands as well as New Guinea
. On Mount Kinabalu, the animal grows to a length of approximately 70 cm and lives in burrows in the soft and thick soils around Paka Cave shelter, at an altitude of 3,000 m above sea level. The earthworm
's segments are encirled by numerous seta
e and its skin has a greenish iridescent gloss. Amongst the Kinabalu earthworm's natural predators is another large annelid, the Kinabalu giant red leech
. Both animals can only be seen during or after a heavy downpouring of rain.
Annelid
The annelids , formally called Annelida , are a large phylum of segmented worms, with over 17,000 modern species including ragworms, earthworms and leeches...
native to Mount Kinabalu
Mount Kinabalu
Mount Kinabalu is a prominent mountain on the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. It is located in the East Malaysian state of Sabah and is protected as Kinabalu National Park, a World Heritage Site. Kinabalu is the tallest peak in Borneo's Crocker Range and is the tallest mountain in the Malay...
, Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
and surrounding islands as well as New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
. On Mount Kinabalu, the animal grows to a length of approximately 70 cm and lives in burrows in the soft and thick soils around Paka Cave shelter, at an altitude of 3,000 m above sea level. The earthworm
Earthworm
Earthworm is the common name for the largest members of Oligochaeta in the phylum Annelida. In classical systems they were placed in the order Opisthopora, on the basis of the male pores opening posterior to the female pores, even though the internal male segments are anterior to the female...
's segments are encirled by numerous seta
Seta
Seta is a biological term derived from the Latin word for "bristle". It refers to a number of different bristle- or hair-like structures on living organisms.-Animal setae:In zoology, most "setae" occur in invertebrates....
e and its skin has a greenish iridescent gloss. Amongst the Kinabalu earthworm's natural predators is another large annelid, the Kinabalu giant red leech
Kinabalu giant red leech
The Kinabalu giant red leech is a large bright orange-red coloured leech that is endemic to Mount Kinabalu, Borneo. Very little is known about this animal although it has been identified as Mimobdella buettikoferi Blanchard, 1897....
. Both animals can only be seen during or after a heavy downpouring of rain.