The University of Iowa Museum of Natural History begins the annual UI Explorers Seminar series Thursday, Sept. 13, at 7 p.m. in the Biosphere Discovery Hub in Macbride Hall. The first seminar of the series, “Earthworms from Sea Level to Treetops: They are Not All the Same!” is offered by Samuel James, UI adjunct associate professor of biology in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. The lecture is free and open to the public.

James will share his experiences discovering and describing new earthworm species and give insight to the evolution and surprising diversity of earthworm locations, lifestyles, and features. Author and co-author of over 70 publications, he has collected earthworms on every continent except Antarctica and Australia.

The UI Explorers Seminar series features a cross-section of university departments, including biology, anthropology, geoscience, environmental science, engineering, and geography. Each program includes a 30-45 minute lecture followed by informal discussion with the speaker and light refreshments.

For more information on the UI Pentacrest Museums and the UI Museum of Natural History, call 319-335-0606 or visit www.uiowa.edu/mnh.