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We all know about bees and how important they are, because, well, they’re cute. But what about the brown and grey unloved little beings that live underground, that work very hard all year round to sustain the earth?

So who are they, and what do they do? In general, we call them decomposers, and their job is to break down organic matter – leaves, bits of wood bark, rotten fruits – into rich, loamy soil that we use to plant food. They are important, because if your soil is good, you get good fruits and vegetables out of it. But some of them are also pests.

So this is who they are:

Earthworm

They are moist and wiggly, and live deep in the soil and moist leaf little. They have no arms, legs or eyes, but they have bristly hairs on their bodies which they use to move and burrow. They can grow up to 14 inches and live up to 6 years! An earthworm can eat up to a third of its body weight in a day.

Earthworms are very important to soil health and to plants because they transport nutrients and minerals via their waste.

Slug

Slugs are like snails without shells, and they leave a trail of slime behind them as they travel (to protect their soft bodies from rough surfaces and also to help them climb vertical surfaces). The slime absorbs water, so it is difficult to wash slug slime off your hands! They have their own individual scent to help them find their way home. A slug smells with its tentacles.

They love juicy green leaves and beer! They come out at night mainly to munch away, destroying plants but they are good for the soil because apart from eating dead leaves, they also eat dead worms and other dead animal material. They are, in turn, eaten by snakes, toads, turtles, beetles, and birds.

Beetle

Baby beetle are called grubs. Adult beetles usually have two pairs of wings, with a strong pair in front to protect the delicate ones behind like a protective case. Beetles cannot see very well, so they communicate using pheromones, sounds or vibrations.

Beetles help the environment (they are also pollinators like bees and they are also decomposers like earthworms), but some beetles are also a pest because they destroy crops. They can be found in all types of places, from mountain tops to wet areas to hot deserts.

Here’s an interesting fact: though they live for only about a year, more than one-third of all insects are beetles!

And here’s an even more interesting fact about millipedes: fossil evidence suggests that they were the earliest animals to breathe air and make the move from water to land, some 428 million years ago!

Millipede

They live in forests all over the world, working hard as decomposers. Mother millipedes burrow into the soil and dig nests where they lay their eggs. Millipedes are sweet little things and they make good pets as they do not bite, they do not pinch and they do not scratch. When they are threatened, they curl up into a ball. Some millipedes have stink glands to put out bad smell to repel predators.

Here’s an interesting fact: millipedes do not have a thousand legs, contrary to their name!

Termite

Termites eat wood, so they are not good for your furniture!

But they are real hard workers as they never sleep. They work night and day to build colonies, and termite colonies are HUGE. Because of this, they are extremely good for soil health as they excavate and break down organic materials when constructing their mounds.

Termites may look like ants, but they are actually enemies. You can eat termites, they are actually good for you.

Good article in New York Times on termites and also a photo showing an elephant scratching itself on a termite mound. Click here.

Pill bug

They are also known as rolly polly because they can roll up in a ball. They are found under damp objects or in organic garbage. If pill bugs enter a building, they will dry out and die (though don’t worry, pill bugs don’t cause diseases). Pill bugs are active at night, munching away at organic matter like earthworms and making the soil healthy with their waste. Pill bugs can live up to 2 years.

Here’s an interesting fact about pill bugs: they roll up when they feel threatened! This is why they are also known as rolly polly.

Sow bug

They are the same greyish, dark brownish colour like pill bugs, but the big difference is in their behaviour: they run away when they feel threatened, unlike the pill bugs which roll up into a ball. Another difference is how they look: sow bugs have distinct bits sticking out from their rear.

Apart from that, they are almost the same. And they can be pests. If you have wet cardboards, old boxes, and grass clippings, you will find them there, to the annoyance of people.

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