SOME ASPECTS OF REPRODUCTIVE-BIOLOGY OF 3 EARTHWORM SPECIES (OLIGOCHAETA, LUMBRICIDAE) IN SOUTHERN CHILE

In the south of Chile, three species of earthworm were studied: Dendro baena subrubicunda (Savingny, 1826), Eisenia fetida fetida (Savingn, 1 826) and Lumbricus rubellus (Hoffmeister, 1845). Two extracting beds a nd ''ootecas'' were installed to be studied in the laboratory. The wor ms were fed with organic wastes coming from vegetables and animals, es tabilized with aerobic fermentation. Some morphological and morphometr ical features and their main reproductive parameters were established for each species. The individuals were kept in plastic containers to r ecord appearance of papulae, puberty, clitelum and lay of ootecas. D. subrubicunda was the biggest at the moment of eclosion (9.1 mm), and L . rubellus had the highest weight (0,005 g). The three species had a c onstant growth in lime, getting L. rubellus a greater size (59,4 mm) a nd D. subrubicunda a smaller size (33 mm) at sexual maturity. The repr oductive period was between winter and spring seasons. The species wit h the shorter period of incubation was the E. fetida fetida (46,6 days ) and L. rubellus had the greatest period of incubation (107 days). Th e species with the highest number of offsprings was E. fetida fetida ( 2.5 ind/oot) and the one with the lowest was L. rubellus (1 indx oot). The most sexually precocious was D. subrubicunda (14,3 weeks). The ot her species matured at a similar age (19 weeks).