I’m glad you took the time to put out your questions and concerns. It is a good line of inquiry.

As usual, your knowledge enlightens any discussion and comments here.

Again, it’s not that I doubted the man—
Just thought there might be “exceptions.”
Thanks for the info again. And great Cryptid to study—I agree.

As mystery_man mentioned, there is already a known species of worm, the Palouse earthworm, that has been reported to be up to 3ft. it is also said to live in burrows at 15ft deep. this species is one of the few earthworms that are native to North America and found in the northwest.

if Palouse can be proven to reach such a size, i do not think it would be a stretch for a sister species to be found in Mongolia being that the two continents were joined by Beringia not so long ago. a 3ft worm should easily be able to dig burrows deeply enough to reach a water table. Palouse is also said to store water during drought.

so, i think it possible. hopefully, the tales from the nomads are more than oral ancestor memories about a creature that is now extinct.

So really moisture seems to be the main obstacle to this being a true worm. There are ways I suppose this obstacle could be overcome, and staying well under the surface except for hunting would explain this cryptid’s elusive and rarely seen nature. Still, it would have to come to the dry surface to feed, so that’s going to put a worm at risk.

I think reptile is more probable considering what we know, but if the moisture problem has been solved somehow, I can’t see how it would be completely impossible for this to be some type of worm.

Oh, and I can’t resist. “Graboids! Let’s call them GRABOIDS! We found them, we should name them!”

I think there are many things about the Mongolian Death Worm that are fully in keeping with established biological precedents, and actually not that many things that I would call entirely far fetched. In many ways, I would have to disagree with the assertion made by Farrier that this would be a “ridiculous creature.”

For instance, we already have a large worm that is known to “spit” at enemies. The Palouse earthworm reaches lengths of over three feet long and is known to discharge a substance at animals that provoke it. The Mongolian Death worm is said to fire a corrosive acid of some kind, but even this is not entirely fanciful. It could be that these creatures use a mechanism similar to that employed by the Bombardier beetle. These beetles have two seperate resevoirs of different chemicals stored in their abdomen, specifically hydroquinone and hydrogen peroxide. When the beetle is provoked, these two chemicals are shot out through a chamber which contains catalytic agents, the two chemicals mix, and produce a violent chemical reaction. The resulting discharge is a spray that reaches around the temperature of boiling water. I wonder if the Mongolian Death Worm might use a similar mechanism to produce the corrosive discharge that is reported.

The size and spitting of corrosive chemicals are biologically feasible. So how about the electrocution? This two is obviously seen in animals like the electric eel and electric catfish, so although we are dealing with a terrestrial animal here that would lack the luxury of the conductive properties of water, perhaps it has an adaptation to produce these electrical currents on land.

Now to your question of whether a worm could live in the desert. The habitat in the Gobi desert is certainly not inhospitable to life. In fact, the Gobi desert has an incredibly diverse ecosystem and a lot of biodiversity. You can find tenecious, desert adapted plants here, as well as a wide variety of wildlife. Here we can find birds, insects, lizards, and larger animals such as the Asiatic ibex, wild ass, Saiga antelope, black-tailed gazelle, marbled polecats, even a type of bear called the Gobi bear. The temperates in the Gobi desert, although experiencing extreme variations, are also generally comparatively cooler than other deserts due to the northern location and high altitude. It is often called a “cold” desert.

Even in places where the temperature gets incredibly hot animals can survive this. In fact, one of the most heat tolerant creatures on Earth is an invertebrate called the Pompeii worm, which lives by the undersea hydrothermal vents. These creatures can withstand temperatures of up to a searing 176 degrees Farenheit. So the habitat, the heat, and the biological precedents found in nature do not rule out a worm-like creature living here.

I think the main problem with the Mongolian Death Worm being an actual worm has to do with the way a worm’s respiratory system works. Since these organisms do not have lungs, they rely on breathing through their skin, which requires a moist surface at all times. If a worm dries out, it suffocates. Now of course deep under the surface, there might be moisture. Some worms are also able to retain moisture through an organ called the nephridia which is basically like kidneys for invertebrates. However, I do wonder whether any worm could maintain the adequate moisture they require in the type of dry climate we are talking about here.

Another problem is that worms need something to eat, some sort of nutrients to absorb in the soil. I wonder whether there would be enough of this sort of biological material for a worm of this size in the soil of this sparsely vegetated habitat.

If a worm was somehow able to surmount these obstacles in the desert, then sure, why not? Stranger things have been found.

I think in the end I would have to say that a worm might not be impossible, after all we have uncovered surprising life-forms that have adapted to incredibly harsh conditions (we call these extremophiles ). However, when looking at how terrestrial worms are known survive, their general biology, and the almost complete absence of known desert worms in these conditions, I do think it is more likely that we are dealing with a type of snake or other reptile. We have a lot of reptiles desert adapted, yet not really any desert worm like what the Mongolian Death Worm is supposed to be like.

Anyway, hopefully this is helpful to the discussion. I do find the Mongolian Death Worm to be a fascinating cryptid that deserves further investigation.

How does he manage to spend $15,000-$20,000 on a two week, two man expedition with only three staff? We got four people out there for three weeks for a fraction of that, including staff and vehicles. It’s not as if there good hotels in Mongolia to spend money at.

The CFZ expedition in 2005 had no night vision equipment, and I doubt that Adam Davies did in 2003 either. There is no reason to think it is nocturnal.

Although one of the beliefs about the Death Worm is that it prefers the hottest weather, anyone going to the Gobi Desert in August should be prepared for some very uncomfortable temperatures.

If I had seen a Death Worm I would most certainly have grabbed it, and so should anyone else who sees it. At the very least I would get a DNA sample; I would also like to show one to the curator of the Gobi Museum!

I doubt that it spits poison or acid. There are plenty of witness sightings to testify to its existence, but the accounts of its dangerous nature seem to be purely anecdotal.

I suspect that explosives might just alarm it. Better to bring small mammal traps and catch something as bait.

1.5m is not 7.5 feet surely? I think the first is closer.

Is it remotely possible that it could have an electric sense? This would be useful to a creature that lives underground in dry soil. It might detect the electric fields of small animals; better still, it could generate its own field and use this to sense prey above ground.

I’m not saying what he said is not true—just that I thought that under certain circumstances worms COULD survive.
The Saharan Ant can survive scorching temperatures that would slowly fry many other creatures—why can’t a Worm?
Worms spend most of their lives underground. And there are “cool” underground spots in the Desert—as far as I know. In some deserts there is also some sort of “shade” where an animal can get protection.

I understand their skins are delicate and sensitive but given the apparent size and physiology of the Mongolian Death Worm I would think it would have developed an “Adaptation” that would enable it to survive the inhospitable environment of the Gobi.

Again, it’s not that I doubt the gentleman—it’s just that I cannot think that there are “exceptions.” I do agree it could be a type of Snake—that would be a Magnificent Discovery—a Giant, Killer Snake—but what if it turns out to be Worm still???
The descriptions from witnesses tally with those of a Worm. So wouldn’t that prve there are “exceptions” to every some beliefs?

Does anybody know whether Worms surviving in the Desert is possible? Just wanted to know if that was possible. If I’m wrong I understand.
Anyway, I wish Farrier the best of luk on his expedition and hope it yields great results.
Smart idea with the explosives—very “politically incorrect,” but smart—lets’ see what happens.