Paul Campbell, age 11, of Merrillville, Indiana, for his question:

How do night crawlers differ from earthworms?

The only difference depends on the time of day. If you find the little creature while digging in the garden during the daytime, you call him an earthworm. If you meet him emerging from his burrow at dawn or dusk, you might call him a night crawler. In any case, the earthworm and the night crawler are one and the same. Two things about him should be remembered. His burrowing activities are very beneficial to the soil    and the small creature is hunted by many foes.

Robins enjoy him for breakfast. Humans hunt him to spike on fish hooks, hoping this bait will help catch a fish in some stream or lake. These hopeful fisherman often hunt their bait at night, when earthworms normally emerge from their burrows. Most likely these are the people who named the earthworm a night crawler. Some perhaps fail to recognize him as one and the same. And some, no doubt, either do not know or care that he is most beneficial to the soil where he rightly belongs.