I found a dead worm on top of my compost. I know EWC is useful, but if the worm is dead it won't be making any castings. Should I leave it there anyway to decompose in the same soil I use to grow, or should I take it out? Edit: FYI pretty sure it just died from heat, otherwise looks healthy.
Soil a little dry and the little one was on top getting 27°C of direct sunlight, so that was not ideal..
id leave it but would investigate why it was laying dead on the surface. i never see worms crawling on top of the soil surface, they hate light and will almost always prefer to stay underground, unless something is driving them out of the soil like heat from high amount of decomposition or too wet or acidic conditions etc.
i wouldn't worry for just one worm. if it smells and looks healthy, it probably is. Though, check for white maggots. They like red worms and they eat them. So if you see worms cut in pieces take them out, dump the ongoing product and start a new bin. It happened to me.
