Reproduction and Mass Gain of the Californian Red Worm (Eisenia foetida) with Cattle and Sheep Manure

Abstract

Vermiculture as a biotechnology allows the cultivation or breeding of worms, in order to manage organic waste in vermicompost or vermicompost, mainly animal excreta that cause negative impact on the environment. The objective was to evaluate the production, reproduction, increase in biomass of Eisenia foetida and conversion of substrate into vermicompost. Five treatments of pre-composted manure were used: cattle (1:0), sheep (0:1) and the 3:1, 1:1, and 1:3 mass/mass combinations, with three replicates. 100 worms were placed per replicate and the number and mass gain were determined. At 90 days, an analysis of variance and Tukey's test (α=0.05) were performed. The 1:3 combination showed the highest reproduction, while the 1:0 combination showed the highest increase in mass (46.16 g). Regarding the conversion of manure into vermicompost, the most efficient treatment was 1:3 because the proportion of the substrate mixture was more accepted and digested by the worms and 1:0 was the lowest.