Our results contradict those Williams et al. (2006) who
observed that earthworms (Lumbricus terrestris and Dendrobaena
venata) extended the survival of E. coli O157:H7 in soil and compost
owing to earthworm predation on protozoans that feed on
E. coli (Bonkowski and Schaefer, 1997; Brown and Doube, 2004),
or perhaps to earthworm predation on antagonistic microorganisms
in the substrate (the difference fades out in the long-term).