See The World’s Largest and Most Extraordinary Earthworm

What's 31 inches long, one inch thick, has no legs, and
slithers through the ground? No, it's not a snake, it's an
earthworm! The Giant Gippsland, found in Gippsland
in south-eastern Australia, is the world's largest species
of earthworms. Fully stretched, it can measure up to
two meters in length.
These slithering giants are surprisingly gentle creatures.
They are quite hard to spot, spending most of their lives
deep underground. Higher water content in the soil
helps them breathe better. Their burrows can be as deep
as 3 to 5 feet below the surface. Sometimes, heavy
rainfall forces them to emerge out of the dirt. You
might find also find their burrows in places where
there's been a landslip.
They are quite fragile – reckless handling can crush and
kill them. Only a particular type of moist soil is suitable
for their survival. If you happen to walk over their
water-filled burrows, they will respond to the vibration
of your footsteps. They start to crawl about and make
squelchy noises that are quite easy to hear. So even
though the Gippsland Giants are pretty rare, you'll
know when they are around.
Giant Gippslands lay huge egg cocoons that look like
brown bean pods. They lay only one egg at a time,
which takes a whole year to hatch. The babies aren't
cute or tiny; they qualify as humongous in earthworm
terms at 7 inches long! They don't grow very rapidly
though. It takes them about five years to reach their
maximum length. We do not know exactly how long
they live, but the estimated age of these remarkable
creatures is 20 years.
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