Drilosphere

The drilosphere is defined as the whole soil volume that is under the influence of earthworms, including the external soil and the body and internal structures of the worm that come in contact with the soil. (2) As ecosystem engineers(1), earthworms have the ability to change the soil, both physiochemically and biologically (2).

References

(1) Cuddington, Kim, et al. Ecosystem Engineers: Plants to Protists. Academic Press, 2007.

(2)Brown, George, et al. Regulation of Soil Organic Matter Dynamics and Microbial Activityin the Drilosphere and the Role of Interactionswith Other Edaphic Functional Domains. European Journal of Soil Biology.