Global distribution of expertise on soil micro- and mesofauna biodiversity evaluated by data science tools
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25674/424Keywords:
soil biodiversity, soil invertebrates, bibliographic database, GLOSOBAbstract
Soils harbor a complex and diverse set of organisms able to regulate numerous environmental processes and affect the provision of various ecosystem services. However, these organisms are threatened by soil degradation, so we must expand knowledge and governance on these organisms and their multiple functionalities. The Global Soil Biodiversity Observatory (GLOSOB) was launched by the Convention on Biological Diversity in 2022 to assess and monitor soil biodiversity worldwide and fill this knowledge gap. As a basis for the establishment of GLOSOB, bibliographic analyses were conducted to map expertise in soil biodiversity, as well as the approaches and methods most used around the world. The present study focused on soil micro and mesofauna biodiversity, obtained by searching the Web of Science publications from January 2011 to February 2022 and subsequently applying a data science tool. The geographic distribution of the studies was highly skewed, with some nations like China, USA, several European countries, Brazil, the Russian Federation and Australia frequently appearing among the top 20 most productive and highlighting a stronger focus on soil micro and mesofauna research. The main gaps were in the African continent, the Middle East, Central and Southeast Asia and most of Latin America and the Caribbean, with few studies, heterogeneous and/or discontinuous scientific production on different aspects of micro and mesofauna. Most (65%) microfauna publications were on protists and 33% with nematodes. Microarthropods (Collembola and Acari) were the most studied groups of the mesofauna. For both soil micro and mesofauna, bioindicator approaches were the most used. In terms of methods for studying microfauna, DNA-related techniques were the most cited, while for mesofauna, extraction devices were the most frequently used. To establish soil micro and mesofauna biodiversity monitoring programs, there is a need for significant advances, both conceptually and in the standardization of methods for capacity building worldwide.
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Copyright (c) 2025 Maria Elizabeth Fernandes Correia, George Brown, Cintia Niva, Luiz Fernando Antunes, Talita Ferreira, Maria Inês Oliveira, Dr Juaci V. Malaquias, Dr Ozanival Dario D. Silva, Dr Natalia Eugenio
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