London, October 3 (ANI): Earthworms have pipped mankind and dinosaurs to emerge as the most successful 100 species on Earth in a new league table.

Christopher Lloyd, the author of ‘What on Earth Evolved?’, examined the entire history of the planet and its life forms to determine the most successful ones.

The writer explained that earthworms have managed to survive five extinction events and helped human civilisation by ploughing and fertilising the soil.

“There is no reason that humans should be top of the list just because we think we are the most powerful,” The Telegraph quoted him as saying.

“We have only been here for about 160,000 years compared to 600 million years for the direct ancestor of earthworms and our impact on the environment is relatively recent.

“It is a vital message to get across - to see the history of life in the context of science and biology as well as human culture - because we depend on earthworms and all other species on the list for our own lives and need to work with nature in future,” he added.

Algae, which is responsible for providing the oxygen supply for other species, was ranked second followed by three forms of bacteria that also helped in the survival of other life forms.

The top 10 species:

1. Earthworms

2. Algae

3. Cyanobacteria

4. Rhizobia

5. Lactobacillus

6. Homo sapiens

7. Stony corals

8. Yeast

9. Influenza

10. Penicillium (ANI)