A study on bioluminescence and photoluminescence in the earthworm Eisenia lucens

Eisenia lucens is an earthworm living in the organic soil layer of decomposing wood. When irritated, the worm expels coelomic fluid through pores in its body wall, exhibiting blue-green bioluminescence. The mechanism of the bioluminescence, which seems to be different from other bioluminescence systems of terrestrial animals, has been studied in this work. Many lines of evidence indicate that riboflavin stored in coelomycetes plays an important role in this glowing reaction.