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Study Shows Worm Grunters Imitate Moles

Posted by kdawson on from the queue-the-jaws-theme dept.

Science_afficionado writes "In the southeastern US, fisherman have an unusual way to collect earthworms for bait. The practice is called worm grunting, fiddling, snoring, or charming. It involves pounding a wooden stake into the ground and rubbing the top of the stake with a long piece of steel to produce a grunting sound that causes earthworms to come to the surface where they can be easily collected for bait. A study published today in the open access journal PLoS ONE shows that the technique works because the worm grunters are unknowingly imitating the sounds created by burrowing moles. Full text of the paper is available at PLoS ONE."

1 of 110 comments (clear)

  1. Burrowing mole or Burrow Owl? by Misanthrope · · Score: -1, Troll

    You know that Johnny Werzner kid - the kid who delivers papers in the
    neighborhood? He's a fine kid. Some of the neighbors say he smokes
    crack, but I don't believe it. Anyway, for his 10th birthday, all he
    wanted was a burrow owl, just like his old man. "Dad, get me a burrow
    owl. I'll never ask for anything else as long as I live". So the guy
    breaks down and buys him a burrow owl. Anyway at 10:30 the other night I
    go out into my yard and there's the Werzner kid looking up in the tree. I
    said, "What are you looking for?" He said, "I'm looking for my burrow
    owl." I say, "Jumping Jesus on a pogo stick! Everybody knows that a
    burrow owl lives in a hole in the ground! Why the hell do you think they
    call it a burrow owl, anyway?!" Now Stuart, do you think a kid like that
    is gonna know what the queers are doing to the soil?

    *bad musical reference, not actually bashing homosexuals*