'NEXT TIME YOU see an earthworm wriggling in the topsoil, make sure you doff your cap respectfully to the little creature. Its digestive and churning activities, along with those of its colleagues, could be worth around €1 billion to Ireland each year, according to the Economic and Social Aspects of Biodiversity report commissioned by the Department of the Environment.
"The earthworms are the keystone species ," says environmental economist Dr Craig Bullock. "They break down a lot of the dead matter when it first arrives on the soil, then the other creatures get on with the job of reducing it even more and making it available to plants."
Their calculated worth is based on studies in Holland and New Zealand, which introduced earthworms to virgin territory and measured their activity, explains Bullock. He adds that the annual figure for Ireland of between €700 million and €1 billion is just an estimate.
Where worms are soldiers of the soil, bees are kings of the air, with a value of around €53 million ascribed to pollination in Irish agriculture. But take into account the wider countryside, and that figure soars.
"Add on all the benefits that pollination brings to the rural landscape that we all value so much, then you are getting close to €500 million," says Bullock.
Worryingly, though, bee species are being lost at a rapid rate, he adds. "It's difficult to say why it is happening, maybe latent chemicals in the environment and habitat loss. Bees are so important to pollination, and you wonder what is going to happen."