Summary
This study used Twitter and co-designed field protocols to build a farmer-scientist partnership that systematically assessed earthworm populations across multiple farms, directly refuting misinformation about global soil degradation and demonstrating that simplistic earthworm counts are insufficient for soil health assessment. The #WorldWormWeek network generated actionable data on anecic earthworm absence in 20% of fields, informing management practices for no-tillage systems. However, the work reveals a structural barrier within academic science: whilst the research had tangible farming impacts, 42% of scientists rated it as 'not at all useful', highlighting a misalignment between farmer-relevant knowledge co-production and traditional disciplinary advancement values.
Regional applicability
The findings on anecic earthworm distribution and no-tillage management practices are directly applicable to UK soil conditions and farming systems. The study's demonstration of digital farmer-scientist partnerships addresses the United Kingdom's need to rebuild agricultural knowledge systems following privatisation of extension services, though uptake may depend on institutional willingness to value farmer-relevant research outcomes alongside traditional scientific metrics.
Key measures
Earthworm population assessments to ecological group level; prevalence of anecic earthworms across fields; scientific community perception ratings of research utility (percentage rating as 'not at all useful' or 'slightly useful')
Outcomes reported
The study demonstrated that a Twitter-based farmer-scientist partnership (#WorldWormWeek) could systematically assess earthworm populations to ecological group level and refute published misinformation about global soil degradation. The research revealed that anecic earthworms were absent in 1 in 5 fields, directly informing no-tillage adoption practices, though 42% of the scientific community did not perceive the work as advancing science.
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