Identification help please
By Marion1
Avon,
United Kingdom 
Hi I wonder if you can help me, during the night I have these tiny worm like creatures come out, most mornings my patio is covered in hundreds and hundreds of them. They look like tiny worms and range from 1 to 4cm long, most of them are about 1 to 2 cm long.My patio is new and I have retaining walls with flower beds. The flower beds have a mixture of top soil & organic compost which I replaced this year. Photo 3 is enlarged, there appears to be a dark amber colour to the centre of the worn/creature. I have lived here 15 years and its never happened before. Any help will be much appreciated on identification and how to control, thanks.
18 Oct, 2022
Answers
I think they are 'brandlings' or red worms. They do a wonderful job of breaking down organic material. Also popular with anglers for bait.
18 Oct, 2022
They are as Loosestrife says one of our native earthworms. There are many different species. If they have a 'saddle' , that thickened bit about 1/3 of the way down from the head then they are adult ones. Juveniles if not.
As the patio is new the dampness will be washing some of the alkaline chemicals out of the mortar and this is an irritant to the worms.
If it were me I'd just swill them with clean water back to the edge where they will find their way back into the soil. As the weather gets colder they will retreat further down into the soil to stay warm.
18 Oct, 2022
Thank you for your answers.
20 Oct, 2022
Looks like a small earthworms from your compost. Aside from heavy rain they will take advantage of morning dew on your patio floor to relocate. Unsightly and a bit messy if you step on them but harmless. Looks like you placed in a good batch of topsoil and compost with a good population of earthworms as an added bonus.
18 Oct, 2022