The invasive European earthworm, Lumbricus terrestris, is now widely distributed in North America. This success may result from high genetic diversity derived from multiple introductions from founder sources across Europe. Using a mitochondrial gene (COI) and microsatellite markers, L. terrestris from seven sites in the Champlain Valley of Vermont USA were scored for genetic diversity and population structure. This region has been a trading crossroads for centuries, thus likely to have received earthworms from multiple origins. COI sequences matched those reported for L. terrestris from Scotland, France, Austria, Denmark, Sweden, and Norway, and 2–5 haplotypes were found at each site. Genetic diversity (microsatellites) was great for each site, but not notably greater than for earthworm populations in general, possibly because there may be allele size homoplasy, or some restriction in the number of alleles possible at any locus. The earthworms were genetically differentiated among the Vermont study sites, even those 0.6–13 km distant. These results support the view that L. terrestris is a successful invasive earthworm because multiple introductions provided ample genetic variation for natural selection and local differentiation among locations in North America. Last, a large number of microsatellite markers is provided, including suggested PCR programs, for free use by future researchers.

欧洲入侵性Lu Lu现在已经在北美广泛分布。这种成功可能源于欧洲各地创始人多次引进而来的高度遗传多样性。利用线粒体基因（COI）和微卫星标记，对美国佛蒙特州尚普兰河谷七个地点的陆生L. terrestris进行了遗传多样性和种群结构评分。这个地区数百年来一直是贸易的十字路口，因此很可能已经收到了来自多个起源的earth。COI序列与报道的陆地藜（L. terrestris）匹配来自苏格兰，法国，奥地利，丹麦，瑞典和挪威，每个地点发现2-5个单倍型。每个站点的遗传多样性（微卫星）都很大，但通常明显比than种群更大，这可能是因为可能存在等位基因大小同质，或在任何位点可能存在的等位基因数量受到限制。the在佛蒙特州的研究地点，甚至在距离0.6-13公里的地方，在遗传上都有差异。这些结果支持L. terrestris的观点。是一种成功的入侵性，因为多次引入为北美地区之间的自然选择和局部分化提供了充足的遗传变异。最后，提供了许多微卫星标记，包括建议的PCR程序，供将来的研究人员免费使用。