epigeic

• epigaeic

From French épigé + -ic. Épigé, first applied in the context of earthworms by Marcel Bouché (see anecic), is from Ancient Greek ἐπίγειος (epígeios, “terrestrial”).

epigeic (not comparable)

1. Living on the surface of the land.
   • 2022 September 19, Schultheiss et al., “The abundance, biomass, and distribution of ants on Earth”, in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, page 1, column 1:

     Our large dataset on epigaeic ant abundances is complemented by a second, smaller dataset of 24 published studies on arboreal ant abundances.

2. (of earthworms) Living in the topsoil and depositing wormcasts on the surface.

   Coordinate terms: anecic, endogeic

• epigeal, epigean, epigeous