VIDEO. How flatworms, carnivorous and invasive, threaten France

Shanèze Noël, a doctoral student in evolutionary ecology at UPEC/iEES-Paris, explains: “It is a species of invasive flatworm, which represents a potential threat to our French earthworms because it is carnivorous.” According to the doctoral student, “In overgrown gardens, you can find millions of them.” This proliferation is explained by their exceptional reproductive capacity. “One individual made eight cocoons in two weeks, with ten juveniles per cocoon.”she said. Additionally, flatworms could be hermaphroditic or even reproduce by parthenogenesis, that is, clone themselves.

Shanèze Noël explains that “It’s not at all a species that is supposed to be there in the first place and it is neither recognized by prey nor by predators”. Flatworms therefore represent a threat to the balance of existing ecosystems. Their presence could disrupt the life cycle of earthworms, which are essential for the degradation of organic matter and the proper functioning of soils. “If earthworms disappear, we will have a completely catastrophic loss. Plants can no longer get their minerals from the soil, which they need to grow, etc. It’s really a chain reaction throughout the entire ecosystem,” warns the researcher. Protecting soils, often neglected by legislation, is crucial to preserving biodiversity which is often invisible but essential to our survival.