Earthworms (Annelida: Clitellata: Megadrili) of Solan, a constituent of Himalayan Biodiversity Hotspot, India

Abstract

The present work is an update on the earthworm fauna of Solan District, Himachal Pradesh State, a constituent of Himalayan biodiversity hotspot. It is based on the field collection and published litera- ture data. Hereby, it is provided an updated list of 32 species belonging to 18 genera and seven families, namely Moniligastridae, Lumbricidae, Ocnerodrilidae, Acanthodrilidae, Benhamiidae, Octochaetidae and Megascolecidae. These mainly include exotic and native peregrine species, including exotic per- egrine Amynthas hupeiensis (Michaelsen, 1895), which was recently recorded for the first time from India. A systematic account of earthworm species with their distribution and a dichotomous key is provided for their identification.

Keywords

• dichotomous key
• distribution
• endemic
• exotic
• na