One would be surprised at the frequency that animals are found in wells. They can fall in through a cracked well casing or lid, migrate in through karst or other geological formations, or come in through a damaged well casing that is below ground. Depending on the well size, they could be as varied as rodents, or insects, or even species that have never been described before as was the case in Georgia with the discovery of a new species of isopod . These animals can cause or indicate bacterial contamination of water in the well and possibly beyond to the surrounding area. Below, you will find some examples of animals that have been found in wells throughout Kentucky.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pq7Xie7Acxk

These mice were found in an abandoned well in Nelson Co., and probably arrived there by falling through the broken well head at the top of the well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZ5nTha-9PE

The first section of this video shows a possible entry point for an animal through a large void. The second part of the video shows two crayfish present near the bottom of that same well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBEUBizjUqk

In this video you can see an insect moving along the bottom right hand side of the video. It is unknown how this insect gained access to the well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMpmEPF_zJk

As the camera is moving down the well, you can observe a worm moving on the left hand side of the video, It is possible that this worm came into the well through a hole in the casing which you can see evidence of by the water stain running down the well on the upper left hand side of the video.