8-Inch Worms That Jump a Foot High Are Back in New England for the Summer

Yes, Hollywood could certainly turn this into a horror movie.

Asian jumping worms – also called Alabama jumpers, Jersey wrigglers, and crazy snake worms – wreak havoc (if they haven't already) on your gardens, forests, and the ecosystem as a whole.

They're especially detrimental in Maine and New Hampshire, where both states often issue warnings, but also in Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

Pretty much every state has them now as they've spread west over the last couple of years.

Now, according to the USDA, these creepy crawlers aren't a danger to you. It's their destructive nature that is ruining your garden and bushes, because of their voracious appetites.

They need fuel from all their jumping, which can be up to a foot high, especially when they feel threatened or are disturbed.

According to Cornell University, Asian jumping worms are originally from East Asia, hence their name. Since jumping worms live in the soil, we humans inadvertently help spread them through our use of mulch, potting mixes, potted plants, and even when raking and blowing leaves.

I've attached a video with information from the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation, and Forestry, along with two additional videos at the end of this article.

But they're not hard to miss, according to the CT Insider.

When Asian jumping worms leap into the air, there's nothing smooth about it.

They thrash around as a method to escape predators while they slither around like snakes. The jumping worm also has a prominent cream-colored band around its body, which is easily visible.

They will completely freak most of us out with that foot-high jump into the air, which happens when they're disturbed or feel threatened.

You know you have an infestation if your soil looks like coffee grounds or Grape Nuts cereal, according to CT Insider. You can kill the worms with one or two drops of dish soap dissolved in a gallon of water.

According to the University of New Hampshire, the adults die each winter after laying up to 60 tiny cocoons the size of a mustard seed, which hatch at 50 degrees.

Prevention is the only way to slow the spread of the worms, since there are no chemical or pesticide treatments available. Your local nursery can help you out with that.