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Abstract
There is general agreement among ecologists that earthworms are critical for ecosystem functioning. However, the ecology and diversity of the North American native family Sparganophilidae are still greatly understudied. These peculiar earthworms inhabit the interface between aquatic and terrestrial systems, occupying sediments along the margins of streams, lakes and wetlands. Three sizes of streams were compared between three US Forest Service Experimental Forests (Calhoun, Scull Shoals and Hitchiti) in the Southern Appalachian Piedmont region of North America. In each stream a transect was placed and systematically sampled during the spring, summer and fall of 2017. A total of ten species of sparganophilids were collected, all of them new to science, almost doubling the number of species within the family. None of the species were shared between sites, revealing high local endemism. In light of these results, this North American native family of earthworms is suggested to be an excellent candidate for further study as an eco-evolutionary model.