Objective of the study

The study is designed to assess the effects of a pesticide in soil on mortality of the earthworm species Eisenia fetida or Eisenia andrei. Adult worms are exposed to a range of concentrations of the test substance either mixed into the soil or applied to the soil surface. The range of test concentrations is selected to encompass those likely to cause lethal effects over a period of fourteen days.

Circumstances under which the study is recommended to be required

The test is still required by some countries. It has been abandoned by the EU because it does not lead to a sensitive endpoint (acute LC₅₀). If acute earthworm toxicity data are used, however, care should be taken to apply a higher assessment factor than for the reproduction test data.

Test organism or substrate

The study is conducted with adult earthworms of the species Eisenia fetida or Eisenia andrei

Test substance

• Technical grade active ingredient
• A study with the end-use product is recommended to be required if the toxicity of the pesticide product cannot be reliably predicted on the basis of the active ingredient alone.

Typical endpoints of the study

• Mortality of adult earthworms(LC₅₀)
• Description of obvious physical or pathological symptoms or distinct changes in behaviour as well as body weight changes

Testing guidelines

The following test guidelines may be used for determination of the acute toxicity:

• OECD Guidelines for the Testing of Chemicals. Test No. 207: Earthworm, Acute Toxicity Tests
• Earthworm acute toxicity: ISO guideline 11268-1 Part 1: Determination of acute toxicity to Eisenia fetida/Eisenia andrei containing Annex A which describes testing under tropical conditions

Note: ISO guidelines are not available free of charge but need to be purchased from the International Organization for Standardization. Pesticide regulators, however, may be able to obtain a copy through their national standards organization